39 Facts About Carbon monoxide

1.

Carbon monoxide is a colorless, highly poisonous, odorless, tasteless, flammable gas that is slightly less dense than air.

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2.

In mammalian physiology, carbon monoxide is a classical example of hormesis where low concentrations serve as an endogenous neurotransmitter and high concentrations are toxic resulting in carbon monoxide poisoning.

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3.

In 1854, Adrien Chenot similarly suggested carbon monoxide to remove the oxygen from blood and then be oxidized by the body to carbon dioxide.

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4.

The mechanism for carbon monoxide poisoning is widely credited to Claude Bernard whose memoirs beginning in 1846 and published in 1857 phrased, "prevents arterials blood from becoming venous".

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5.

Carbon monoxide gained recognition as an invaluable reagent in the 1900s.

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6.

Carbon monoxide is the simplest oxocarbon and is isoelectronic with other triply-bonded diatomic species possessing 10 valence electrons, including the cyanide anion, the nitrosonium cation, boron monofluoride and molecular nitrogen.

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7.

Ground electronic state of carbon monoxide is a singlet state since there are no unpaired electrons.

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8.

Carbon monoxide is present in small amounts in the Earth's atmosphere.

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9.

Small amounts are emitted from the ocean, and from geological activity because carbon monoxide occurs dissolved in molten volcanic rock at high pressures in the Earth's mantle.

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10.

Carbon monoxide has an indirect effect on radiative forcing by elevating concentrations of direct greenhouse gases, including methane and tropospheric ozone.

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11.

Carbon monoxide is short-lived in the atmosphere, and spatially variable in concentration.

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12.

Carbon monoxide is, along with aldehydes, part of the series of cycles of chemical reactions that form photochemical smog.

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13.

Beyond Earth, carbon monoxide is the second-most common diatomic molecule in the interstellar medium, after molecular hydrogen.

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14.

Carbon monoxide observations provide much of the information about the molecular clouds in which most stars form.

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15.

At room temperature and at atmospheric pressure, carbon monoxide is actually only metastable and the same is true at low temperatures where CO and are solid, but nevertheless it can exist for billions of years in comets.

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16.

Carbon monoxide can react with water to form carbon dioxide and hydrogen:.

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17.

Carbon monoxide has a wide range of functions across all disciplines of chemistry.

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18.

Carbon monoxide is conveniently produced in the laboratory by the dehydration of formic acid or oxalic acid, for example with concentrated sulfuric acid.

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19.

Carbon monoxide is produced from the partial oxidation of carbon-containing compounds; it forms when there is not enough oxygen to produce carbon dioxide, such as when operating a stove or an internal combustion engine in an enclosed space.

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20.

For example, during World War II, a gas mixture including carbon monoxide was used to keep motor vehicles running in parts of the world where gasoline and diesel fuel were scarce.

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21.

Major industrial source of CO is producer gas, a mixture containing mostly carbon monoxide and nitrogen, formed by combustion of carbon in air at high temperature when there is an excess of carbon.

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22.

Carbon monoxide can be produced by high-temperature electrolysis of carbon dioxide with solid oxide electrolyzer cells.

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23.

Carbon monoxide is a byproduct of the reduction of metal oxide ores with carbon, shown in a simplified form as follows:.

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24.

Carbon monoxide is produced by the direct oxidation of carbon in a limited supply of oxygen or air.

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25.

Carbon monoxide is an industrial gas that has many applications in bulk chemicals manufacturing.

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26.

Carbon monoxide is a strong reductive agent and has been used in pyrometallurgy to reduce metals from ores since ancient times.

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27.

Carbon monoxide is not usually supplied as is, in the gaseous phase, in the reactor, but rather it is formed in high temperature in presence of oxygen-carrying ore, or a carboniferous agent such as coke, and high temperature.

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28.

Carbon monoxide has been used as a lasing medium in high-powered infrared lasers.

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29.

Carbon monoxide is a bioactive molecule which acts as a gaseous signaling molecule.

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30.

Studies involving carbon monoxide have been conducted in many laboratories throughout the world for its anti-inflammatory and cytoprotective properties.

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31.

Carbon monoxide sensing is a signaling pathway facilitated by proteins such as CooA.

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32.

For example, in certain bacteria, carbon monoxide is produced via the reduction of carbon dioxide by the enzyme carbon monoxide dehydrogenase with favorable bioenergetics to power downstream cellular operations.

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33.

Carbon monoxide has certain antimicrobial properties which have been studied to treat against infectious diseases.

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34.

Carbon monoxide is used in modified atmosphere packaging systems in the US, mainly with fresh meat products such as beef, pork, and fish to keep them looking fresh.

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35.

The benefit is two-fold, carbon monoxide protects against microbial spoilage and it enhances the meat color for consumer appeal.

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36.

The carbon monoxide combines with myoglobin to form carboxymyoglobin, a bright-cherry-red pigment.

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37.

Typical levels of carbon monoxide used in the facilities that use this process are between 0.

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38.

Carbon monoxide poisoning is the most common type of fatal air poisoning in many countries.

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39.

Carbon monoxide had been used for genocide during the Holocaust at some extermination camps, the most notable by gas vans in Chelmno, and in the Action T4 "euthanasia" program.

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