guaguanco - 11-3-2004 at 12:14
Some examples:
'conventional' carbon nitride: C3N4
cyanogen: C2N2
tetracyanoethylene: C6N4
hexacyanobutadiene: C10N6
dicyanoacetylene: C4N2
hexacyanobenzene: C12N6
alas, I can't easily get to the chem library, so I can't look up 'cyanocarbons'
chemoleo - 11-3-2004 at 17:51
Hmm, all cyano derivatives. Surely there got to be more?
But to make more cyanostuff, how about phenyl hexa cyan, [C6](CN)6? (i.e. C12N6 -looks impressive doesnt it)
Edit: oops didnt notice u mentioned it already ...
How about cyclo [C3N3]3+??
get a three-valent ion, and it might complex that, it would be a nitride ion i guess 
i.e.
......+N=C
........||..||
....... C...N+
........||..||
......+N=C
Edit: But then, it probably wont exist cus the =C=N bond will be planar, i.e. at 180 deg.. so no ring could form - BUT then you could break the ring and make an indefinite linear molecule... which would work, i.e.
[(NC)2C=N+=C=N+=C(CN)2]2+
Charge increases with length...
[Edited on 12-3-2004 by chemoleo]
Pyrovus - 12-3-2004 at 00:58
How about some azides? The simplest would probably be cyanogen azide, N3CN, or maybe tetraazomethane C(N3)4, although I doubt it would be stable
enough to exist.
The possibilities for nitrocarbons are probably almost unlimited. Even without using groups like CN and N3 it is possible to terminate carbon chains
by forming large cyclic structures. Also, there'd be the cyanide and azide salts of quartenary amines.
unionised - 12-3-2004 at 16:18
In theory you can have an infinite series of poly acetylenes with a cyano group at each end. Some of these might not be very stable but IIRC some (eg
C9N2) have been characterised in interstellar space by the microwave spectra.
guaguanco - 13-3-2004 at 16:18
C9N2 ?
Structure please!
You're correct about polyacetylenes in space, however.
chemoleo - 13-3-2004 at 19:35
well the structure would be
NC-C=C-C=C-C=C-C=C-CN
whereby '=' stands for a triple bond.
So it's not C9N2, but C10N2 - a typo of course 
Anyway, polyactelyens with N3's or CN's are kind of for granted... how about some different, truly novel structures, rather than variations
of the same theme?
PS Btw I am sure you heard about hte theory that organo-nitric compounds came from space (i.e. meteorites, comets) which were responsible for enabling
life to begin on earth? Although (after having read up about it extensivley) I believe thats bollocks?
unionised - 14-3-2004 at 15:52
Oops! not exactly a typo, I wasn't reading the book carefully. The "space molecule" is the cyano acetylene N C9 H.
The dicyano compound with an even number of carbons should be possible.
The really embarrasing thing is the di cyano compound, with no dipole, wouldn't have a microwave spectrum. (I'm meant to be a
spectroscopist; I should have spotted that).
By way of pennance I did some googling and found this
http://www.mrw.interscience.wiley.com/kirk/articles/cyanwebs...
which refers, among others, to tetracyanomethane. I gather some folk here may have thought about that stuff before.
( P.S. I have heard the late Sir Fred Hoyle lecture on the idea that life originated in space; I wasn't convinced)
[Edited on 14-3-2004 by unionised]