Question

Which type of hybridisation is present in a carbon atom in fullerene?

Answer 1

Fullerenes are also known as Buckyballs or buckminsterfullerene. Fullerenes were one of the first nanoparticles invented. These nanoparticles were discovered in 1985 by a group of three researchers namely Richard Smalley, Harry Kroto, and Robert Curl, working at Rice University.

Complete answer:
Fullerenes are carbon atoms connected to three other carbon atoms via covalent bonds. However, the carbon atoms are connected to each other in the pattern similar to hexagons and pentagons (cage-like fused-ring structure) as visible on a soccer ball, thus, giving fullerenes the spherical structure. The most general form of fullerene comprises 60 carbon atoms and is therefore called C60 (as shown in the figure below). It comprises entirely carbon atoms (no hydrogen), and each carbon atom is hybridized. The other sizes of fullerenes vary from those containing 20 carbon atoms to those containing even more than 100 carbon atoms.
Therefore in fullerene, each carbon atom combines with three other carbon atoms through three sigma bonds exactly similar to graphite. As a result similar to graphite, each carbon atom in fullerene is sp2 hybridized.

Note: The covalent bonds between carbon atoms make the fullerenes very strong, and the carbon atoms easily form covalent bonds with other atoms. Fullerenes are also utilized in composites to strengthen the material. Moreover, fullerenes possess the electrical property of being very good electron acceptors, thereby indicating that they accept loose electrons from other materials. This property is useful in increasing the efficacy of solar cells in transforming sunlight into electricity.