Production of Calcium Carbide – CaC 2 - BYJU'S

What is Calcium Carbide?

Pure Calcium Carbide is a colourless and odourless solid with the chemical formula CaC2.

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Commercial Calcium Carbide, however, may present in a relatively wide range of colours depending on the impurities present (usually calcium, magnesium, and other oxides).

CaC2 is a chemical compound with a chemical name Calcium Carbide. It is also known as calcium acetylide, phenyl glyceryl ether diacetate, and glycerol phenyl ether diacetate. Calcium Carbide in its pure form appears as a colourless crystalline solid and is a rock-like structure at room temperature.

Table of Contents

• • Calcium Carbide Structure (CaC2 Structure)
  • Production of Calcium Carbide – CaC2
  • Properties of Calcium Carbide – CaC2
  • Uses of Calcium Carbide (CaC2)
  • Frequently Asked Questions

Calcium Carbide Structure (CaC2 Structure)

Production of Calcium Carbide – CaC2

Production of calcium carbide in industries is as follows.

• • 1. The mixture used is coke and lime
    2. Temperature range is set at approximately 2,200 °C
    3. The entire process is carried out in an electric arc furnace

This compound is widely used in the manufacture of calcium cyanamide and acetylene.

Properties of Calcium Carbide – CaC2

CaC2 Calcium Carbide Molecular Weight/ Molar Mass 64.099 g/mol Density 2.22 g/cm3 Melting Point 0C Boiling Point oC

Uses of Calcium Carbide (CaC2)

• • • It is used in the production of calcium hydroxide and acetylene.
    • It is used in the production of polyvinyl chloride as acetylene the derivative of calcium carbide can be used as a raw material for the production of PVC.
    • It is used to produce calcium cyanamide.
    • It is used in the removal of sulphur from iron. The removal of sulphur from any material is called desulphurization.
    • It is used in lamps such as carbide lamps. In the early days, it was used as headlights for automobiles.
    • Used as a ripening agent like ethylene.
    • It is used in bamboo cannons as well as big-bang cannons.
    • It is used as a deoxidizer i.e it helps in the removal of oxygen during the manufacturing of steel.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the uses of calcium carbide?

Calcium carbide can be reacted with water to produce acetylene and calcium hydroxide. Calcium cyanamide can also be produced from this compound by reacting it with nitrogen at relatively high temperatures. Calcium carbide is also used in the desulphirisation of iron.

What is the role of calcium carbide in carbide lamps?

In carbide lamps, calcium carbide plays an integral role. Water dripping on the carbide creates acetylene gas, which burns and emits light. Carbide lamps were still commonly used in early cars, motorcycles, and bicycles as headlights, but were eventually replaced by electric lamps

How is calcium carbide produced?

Calcium carbide can be produced industrially from a mixture of lime and coke at about 2.200 ° C (3.990 ° F) in an electric arc furnace. In conventional combustion, the high temperature needed for this reaction is not technically achievable, so the reaction is performed in an electric arc furnace with graphite electrodes.

Learn more about the structure, physical and chemical properties of Calcium Carbide (CaC2) from the expert faculties at BYJU’S.

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Ionic carbides

Ionic carbides have discrete carbon anions of the forms C4−, sometimes called methanides since they can be viewed as being derived from methane, (CH4); C22−, called acetylides and derived from acetylene (C2H2); and C34−, derived from allene (C3H4). The best-characterized methanides are probably beryllium carbide (Be2C) and aluminum carbide (Al4C3). Beryllium oxide (BeO) and carbon react at 2,000 °C (3,600 °F) to produce the brick-red beryllium carbide, whereas pale yellow aluminum carbide is prepared from aluminum and carbon in a furnace. Aluminum carbide reacts as a typical methanide with water to produce methane. Al4C3 + 12H2O → 4Al(OH)3 + 3CH4

There are many acetylides that are well known and well characterized. In addition to those of the alkali metals and the alkaline-earth metals mentioned above, lanthanum (La) forms two different acetylides, and copper (Cu), silver (Ag), and gold (Au) form explosive acetylides. Zinc (Zn), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg) also form acetylides, although they are not as well characterized. The most important of these compounds is calcium carbide, CaC2. The primary use for calcium carbide is as a source of acetylene for use in the chemical industry. Calcium carbide is synthesized industrially from calcium oxide (lime), CaO, and carbon in the form of coke at about 2,200 °C (4,000 °F). Pure calcium carbide has a high melting point (2,300 °C [4,200 °F]) and is a colourless solid. The reaction of CaC2 with water yields C2H2 and a significant amount of heat, so the reaction is carried out under carefully controlled conditions. CaO + 3C → CaC2 + CO
CaC2 + 2H2O → C2H2 + Ca(OH)2 Calcium carbide also reacts with nitrogen gas at elevated temperatures (1,000–1,200 °C [1,800–2,200 °F]) to form calcium cyanamide, CaCN2. CaC2 + N2 → CaCN2 + C This is an important industrial reaction because CaCN2 finds extensive use as a fertilizer owing to its reaction with water to produce cyanamide, H2NCN. Most MC2 acetylides have the CaC2 structure, which is derived from the cubic sodium chloride (NaCl) structure. The C2 units lie parallel along the cell axes, causing a distortion of the cell from cubic to tetragonal.

Interstitial carbides

Interstitial carbides are derived primarily from relatively large transition metals that act as a host lattice for the small carbon atoms, which occupy the interstices of the close-packed metal atoms. (See crystal for a discussion of packing arrangements in solids.) Interstitial carbides are characterized by extreme hardness but at the same time extreme brittleness. They have very high melting points (typically about 3,000–4,000 °C [5,400–7,200 °F]) and retain many of the properties associated with the metal itself, such as high conductivity of heat and electricity as well as metallic lustre. At elevated temperatures some interstitial carbides retain the mechanical properties of metals, such as malleability. Many of the early transition metals have radii that are large enough to form interstitial monocarbides, MC. The critical (i.e., minimum) radius appears to be approximately 1.35 angstroms (1.35 × 10−8 cm, or 5.32 × 10−9 inch). However, most transition metals form interstitial carbides of several stoichiometries. For example, manganese (Mn) is known to form at least five different interstitial carbides. In contrast to the ionic carbides, most interstitial carbides do not react with water and are chemically inert. Several have industrial importance, including tungsten carbide (WC) and tantalum carbide (TaC), which are used as high-speed cutting tools because of their extreme hardness and chemical inertness. Iron carbide (cementite), Fe3C, is an important component in steel.

Covalent carbides

There are only two carbides that are considered completely covalent; they are formed with the two elements that are most similar to carbon in size and electronegativity, boron (B) and silicon (Si). Silicon carbide (SiC) is known as carborundum and is prepared by the reduction of silicon dioxide (SiO2) with elemental carbon in an electric furnace. This material, like diamond, is extremely hard and is used industrially as an abrasive. It is chemically inert and has a diamond structure in which each silicon atom and each carbon atom are surrounded tetrahedrally by four atoms of the other type. Boron carbide (B4C) has similar properties. It is also extremely hard and inert. It is prepared by the reduction of boron oxide (B2O3) with carbon in an electric furnace. In the structure of B4C, the boron atoms occur in icosahedral groups of 12, and the carbon atoms occur in linear chains of three. Another boron carbide (BC3), which has a graphitelike structure, is produced from the reaction of benzene (C6H6) and boron trichloride (BCl3) at 800 °C (1,500 °F).

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Steven S. Zumdahl