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Biological carbon fixation, or сarbon assimilation, is the process by which living organisms convert inorganic carbon (particularly carbon dioxide) to organic compounds. These organic compounds are then used to store energy and as structures for other biomolecules. Carbon is primarily fixed through photosynthesis, but some organisms use ...
It constitutes around 38,000 Pg C [18] and includes dissolved carbon dioxide (CO 2), bicarbonate (HCO − 3), carbonate (CO 2− 3), and carbonic acid (H 2 C O 3). The equilibrium between carbonic acid and carbonate determines the pH of the seawater. Carbon dioxide dissolves easily in water and its solubility is inversely related to temperature.
Carbon dioxide is the lasing medium in a carbon-dioxide laser, which is one of the earliest type of lasers. Carbon dioxide can be used as a means of controlling the pH of swimming pools, [140] by continuously adding gas to the water, thus keeping the pH from rising. Among the advantages of this is the avoidance of handling (more hazardous) acids.
Yet it is the twelfth most common element there. In the rock of the lithosphere, carbon commonly occurs as carbonate minerals containing calcium or magnesium. It is also found as fossil fuels in coal and petroleum and gas. Native forms of carbon are much rarer, requiring pressure to form. Pure carbon exists as graphite or diamond. [1]
Photosynthesis (/ ˌfoʊtəˈsɪnθəsɪs / FOH-tə-SINTH-ə-sis) [ 1 ] is a system of biological processes by which photosynthetic organisms, such as most plants, algae, and cyanobacteria, convert light energy, typically from sunlight, into the chemical energy necessary to fuel their metabolism.
Carbohydrate metabolism is the whole of the biochemical processes responsible for the metabolic formation, breakdown, and interconversion of carbohydrates in living organisms. Carbohydrates are central to many essential metabolic pathways. [ 1 ] Plants synthesize carbohydrates from carbon dioxide and water through photosynthesis, allowing them ...
A heterotroph (/ ˈhɛtərəˌtroʊf, - ˌtrɒf /; [1][2] from Ancient Greek ἕτερος (héteros) 'other' and τροφή (trophḗ) 'nutrition') is an organism that cannot produce its own food, instead taking nutrition from other sources of organic carbon, mainly plant or animal matter. In the food chain, heterotrophs are primary, secondary ...
Carbon-based life. For the music group, see Carbon Based Lifeforms. The Lewis structure of a carbon atom, showing its four valence electrons. Carbon is a primary component of all known life on Earth, and represents approximately 45–50% of all dry biomass. [ 1 ] Carbon compounds occur naturally in great abundance on Earth.