Question

The element carbon continuously Cycles through an ecosystem. A simplified carbon cycle showing Step I, where organic molecules (carbohydrates) are created, and step II where CO2, Carbon dioxide, is produced, is depicted below.Identify the process in Step I and explain how it causes the movement of carbon.

Answer 1

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Step-by-step explanation:

Organic molecules in the form of carbohydrates are created during photosynthesis or chemosynthesis and these processes cause carbon to be removed from the atmosphere or other environment into the biosphere - the living organisms of the ecosystem.

During photosynthesis, atmospheric carbon dioxide is fixed as carbohydrates into green plants in a two-stage process that requires sunlight energy and water. The entire process can be summarized as an equation below:

`6CO_2 + 6H_2O + sunlight --> C_6H_1_2O_6 + 6O_2`

Instead of using water as a reactant, chemosynthetic organisms make use of high energy chemicals such as hydrogen sulfide to fix carbon dioxide in order to generate carbohydrates.

`CO_2 + 4H_2S + O_2 -> CH_20 + 4S + 3H_2O`

Both processes ensure that carbon dioxide moves from the environment into living organisms.