Carbon is part of many compounds, all of which have certain common properties. When they burn, the compound is oxidised and carbon dioxide is produced. 3 Many carbon-based compounds are not attracted to water and so in general do not dissolve in water. As a result, water alone cannot be used to remove grease or oil from a surface, nor will water dissolve our skin, because all of these things are carbon compounds. 4 Groups that contain carbon and nitrogen often have an unpleasant smell in liquid form.
Some people compare it to rotting fish.
Such smells are mainly confined to the factories where the materials are made. The common fabric material nylon, for example, which is a plastic that contains nitrogen, has no smell once it is made into a yarn. Some compounds of carbon and nitrogen are very unstable and can be made into explosives. The carbon cycle is the name given to the way that carbon is transferred between plants, animals, the atmosphere, rocks and oceans. The carbon cycle is crucial to the way the planet works.