Carbon dioxide

Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound consisting of two oxygen atoms covalently linked to a central carbon atom, and so can be represented with the chemical formula CO₂.

Carbon dioxide is essential for the process of photosynthesis which occurs in the chloroplasts of plants. This is a process in which the carbon dioxide from the air (around 0.0360% of the air is carbon dioxide) : produced by respiration by living organisms, as well as by the combustion of fossil fuels, is utilised by the plants to produce the sugars they require to grow.