Why does charcoal burn even though it is wood cinders?
Q. Why does charcoal burn even though it is wood cinders?
- A. This is because charcoal is not wood cinders but is made by burning wood slowly in an oven with little air, turning it into carbon.
- Wood is made of fiber (cellulose) and minerals (metals).
When wood is burned, oxygen and other elements in the air (mainly carbon, hydrogen and oxygen) react to form carbon dioxide that is released into the atmosphere, while the minerals turn into ashes.
However when wood is burned in an oven with the flow of air stopped, oxygen inside is soon used up and is not enough to oxidize the carbon in the wood. Thus the carbon is left to turn into charcoal.
This is why when charcoal is burned, only carbon dioxide is released and there is neither smoke nor smell.
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What is cellulose?
Cellulose is a carbohydrate that constitutes the essential part of many organic matters. It is composed of glucose (a variety of sugar) units.
What does organic mean?
Organic is a generic name of chemical compounds containing carbon and is known to ignite easily. The opposite of organic matters such as water, air, and minerals, are inorganic matters.