My Life as a Carbon Atom In The Bush

My name is Bon, and I am a carbon atom. I am a non-metal element, living in the north eastern region of the periodic table, in Period 2, Group IV, which means I have two occupied shells and contain 4 electrons in my valance shell. I am universally renowned from my chemical symbol of C, and distinguished by my atomic number 6, and the atomic mass 12.01. Without me, life as we know it would not exist. Out of …

…of carbon. Maybe I’ll from a covalent lattice layers like those in graphite or three dimensional covalent network lattices to form the hardest known substance on earth, diamond. Once again, I could become a fossil fuel, and undergo catalytic cracking and crack into a smaller hydrocarbon molecule, and undergo addition or condensation polymerisation to from plastics. Oh, the possibilities are boundless, and the cycle is perpetual, and who knows where I’ll be next.