Bucky Ball | Universe Today

Written by Jerry Coffey

A bucky ball is simply a hollow, spherical molecule that is made up entirely of carbon. Actually, any substance that is entirely made up of carbon is called a fullerene. The round ones are called bucky balls, but the cylindrical ones are called nanotubes or bucky tubes. The first fullerene to be discovered was a sphere. It seemed to resemble the geodiscs created by Richard Buckminster Fuller. Hence, the first fullerene was referred to as the Buckminster ball or bucky ball. The discovery of fullerenes greatly expanded the number of known carbon configurations, which until recently were limited to graphite, diamond, soot, and charcoal. Bucky balls and bucky tubes have been the subject of intense research for their unique chemistry and for their technological applications in materials science, electronics, and nanotechnology.

Some elements can exist in two or more different forms, known as allotropes of that element. In each allotrope, the element's atoms are bonded together in a different manner. The discovery of fullerenes caused a huge expansion in the number of known carbon allotropes. The bucky ball configuration is unique in nature and normally can only be found in soot or locations struck by lightning. A common method used to produce fullerenes is to send a large current between two nearby graphite electrodes in an inert atmosphere. The resulting carbon plasma arc between the electrodes cools into a sooty residue from which many fullerenes can be isolated. The bucky ball molecule is made up of sixty carbon molecules arranged in its unique soccer ball structure of pentagons and triangles. Recent investigations point to the possibility that other elements are able to form similar allotropes. Boron is one of these possible elements.

Research into the chemical and physical properties of fullerenes has been a hot topic over the last decade and is likely to continue to be for a long time. Some magazines have published articles about the possible use of fullerenes in body armor. Fullerenes have been under study for medicinal uses like binding specific antibiotics to the structure of target resistant bacteria; and targeting certain cancer cells(melanoma). Fullerenes have been mentioned as a way to produce a light activated antimicrobial agent. Nanotechnology, heat resistance, and superconductivity are other areas of research linked to the bucky ball and other fullerenes.

There is a good article about the bucky ball here. On Universe Today we have a great article about the bucky ball. After looking into the molecular, let's pull back and look at the large scale make up of the universe. Astronomy Cast offers a good episode to help you do just that.

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