Which allotrope of carbon was discovered by Robert F Curl, Harold W Kroto and Richard E Smalley in 1985?

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Accepted Answer

- Step 1: In $1985$ Robert F. Curl, Harold W. Kroto and Richard E. Smalley discovered buckminsterfullerene, an allotrope of carbon with molecular formula $C_{60}$.
- Step 2: The structure is a nearly spherical cage of 60 carbon atoms arranged as 12 pentagons and 20 hexagons (a truncated icosahedron), commonly called a "fullerene" or "buckyball".
- Step 3: For this discovery they were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1996), confirming the identification of the new allotrope.

Therefore the correct choice is (4) Fullerene, which corresponds to option d.

FINAL_ANSWER: d

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