Four Types Of Carbon
BLACK CARBON
- Black carbon (BC) is a component of fine particulate matter of the size 2.5 μm. It consists of pure carbon, which originates from the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, coal, biofuel, biomass, wood, rubber, etc. It is emitted in the form of soot. BrC and BC differ in their ability to absorb radiation, with BC strongly absorbing radiation at all visible wavelengths, whilst BrC primarily absorbs radiation at low visible and near-ultraviolet wavelengths. This distinction is significant as it has the potential to impact the Earth's radiation balance
- Soot is an airborne mass of impure carbon particles resulting from the incomplete combustion of hydrocarbons. It originates from pyrolysis.
BROWN CARBON
- Brown carbon is brown smoke released by the combustion of organic matter. It coexists with black carbon when released into the atmosphere.
- It is one of the significant warming factors as it disturbs the temperature pattern of the atmosphere and the cloud-forming process. It also changes the solar absorption pattern and the nature of clouds.
BLUE CARBON
- It is the carbon captured by the world’s oceans and coastal ecosystems. This carbon is captured by living organisms in oceans and is stored in the form of aquatic biomass. Seagrasses, mangroves, and marshes are types of vegetated coastal blue carbon ecosystems, these habitats have a cover of approximately 49 million hectares worldwide. Blue carbon ecosystems act as the major sink for capturing atmospheric carbon and reducing warming effects.
GREEN CARBON
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It is the carbon captured into terrestrial plant biomass in photosynthesis and stored in the plants and soil of natural ecosystems and is a vital part of the global carbon cycle. Green carbon reflects the carbon sequestered by land ecosystems and incorporates carbon in soils and within biomass such as trees in forests. Blue carbon, by contrast, describes the carbon sequestered in the ocean, the definition of which originally focused on mangroves, salt marshes and seagrasses, but now also includes seaweed, sediments more broadly, and even carbon sequestered by whales.
