Carbon Tetrafluoride
Carbon Tetrafluoride (CF4) is the simplest perfluorcarbon. It is considered one of the key Super Greenhouse Gases which could help Terraform Mars. Fluorine has the strongest covalent chemical bonds, so this gas can last for a long time in Mars' high ultraviolet environment before breaking down.
Contents
Production
It is extremely simple (and inexpensive) to form this compound, simply burning any carbon compound (including pure carbon) with Fluorine will produce it. There are several other ways to produce this gas.
Uses
Apart from terraforming, it is used a a low temperature refrigerant (R-14). It is used in the semi-conductor industry.
Greenhouse Gas
On Earth it lasts ~50,000 years in the atmosphere before being broken up by UV radiation. Mars is farther from the sun (so less UV), but has no Ozone layer (so more UV). On the whole, CF4 will last less time on Mars, but I do not have exact values for how long. However, if life produces more oxygen in the Martian Atmosphere, and an ozone layer builds up, CF4 will last longer than on Earth. This is important since life will make terraforming Mars cheaper.
Carbon Tetrafluoride warms the planet ~6,500 times more than CO2, and blocks heat in other wavelengths than CO2 does.
