Multiple choice

Among the following allotropes, the thermodynamically stable form of phosphorus at room temperature is

  1. diphosphorus

  2. white phosphorus

  3. red phosphorus

  4. black phosphorus
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Black phosphorus is the thermodynamically stable form of phosphorus at room temperature and pressure. It is obtained by heating white phosphorus under high pressures (12,000 atmospheres). In appearance, properties and structure it is very like graphite, being black and flaky, a conductor of electricity, and having puckered sheets of linked atoms.

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