what does graphite react with?

Answer 1

Reaction of carbon with air
Carbon, as graphite, burns to form gaseous carbon (IV) oxide (carbon dioxide), CO2. Diamond is a form of carbon and also burns in air when heated to 600-800°C - an expensive way to make carbon dioxide!

C(s) + O2(g) → CO2(g)

When the air or oxygen supply is restricted, incomplete combustion to carbon monoxide, CO, occurs.

2C(s) + O2(g) → 2CO(g)

This reaction is important. In industry, air is blown through hot coke. The resulting gas is called producer gas and is a mixture of carbon monoxide (25%), carbon dioxide (4%), nitrogen (70%), and traces of hydrogen (H2), methane (CH4), and oxygen (O2).

Reaction of carbon with water
Carbon, either as graphite or diamond does not react with water under normal conditions. Under more forsing conditions, the reaction becomes important. In industry, water is blown through hot coke. The resulting gas is called water gas and is a mixture of hydrogen (H2, 50%), carbon monoxide (CO, 40%), carbon dioxide (CO2, 5%), nitrogen and methane (N2 + CH4, 5%). It is an important feedstock gas for the chemical industry.

C + H2O → CO + H2

This reaction is endothermic (ΔH° = +131.3 kJ mol-1; ΔS° = +133.7 J K-1 mol-1) which means that the coke cools down during the reaction. To counteract this, the steam flow is replaced by air to reheat the coke allowing further reaction.

Reaction of carbon with the halogens
Graphite reacts with fluorine, F2, at high temperatures to make a mixture of carbon tetrafluoride, CF4, together with some C2F6 and C5F12.

C(s) + excess F2(g) → CF4(g) + C2F6 + C5F12

At room temperatur, the reaction with fluorine is complex. The result is "graphite fluoride", a non-stoichiometric species with formula CFx (0.68 < x < 1). This species is black when x is low, silvery at x = 0.9, and colourless when x is about 1.

The other halogens appear to not react with graphite.

Reaction of carbon with acids
Graphite reacts with the oxidizing acid hot concentrated nitric acid to form mellitic acid, C6(CO2H)6.

Answer 2

Chemical Reactivity Of Graphite

Answer 3

C + O2 → CO2 when ignited. So, it is safe to say that the equilibrium state of graphite exposed to our current atmosphere is CO2. Eventually at room temperature graphite will be totally converted to CO2. (It might take centuries or even millions of years). Sorry pigsah. Graphite is fairly stable at RT, so the reaction (unheated) must be very very slow. Diamonds burn, too.

Answer 4

Graphite is a crystalline form of carbon, with no network connectors.

It will undergo any reaction that involves carbon, but usually needs an elevated temperature.

For example,

C + O2 == CO2

Answer 5

Oxygen; you can burn it and you get CO2. Like other forms of carbon it reacts with quite a lot of elements, like the halogens and hydrogen. If you heat it in an electric furnace with limestone you get calcium carbide, which you can then react with water to get acetylene.

Answer 6

graphite is an allotrope of carbon and since carbon is fairly unreactive it's fairly unreactive