Question

carbon is a poor conductor of electricity .Graphite is good conductor.graphite contains carbon particles,why graphite is good conductor

Answer 1

Both are carbon variants. The difference in conductivity is due to the molecular structure of both solids. Recall that carbon has an atomic number of 6, thus 2 electrons are in the first electron layer, and 4 atoms in the outer layer; to form a stable electronic bonding, each carbon atom should get 4 electrons from neighbor atoms.



Graphite: covalent structure, with each carbon bonded to three other carbon atoms in a hexagonal arrangement. Three out of four valence electrons are used for covalent bonding with other carbon atoms. Remaining valence electron can easily (with low energy) be moved across the planes of carbon atoms, making it easy to pass an electric current. Thus, graphite is a good conductor.