炭

tàn = t + an4

wood charcoal / coal

炭 = 山 + 灰 : Tecumseh (t) had a fire running in the anthill's bathroom (an4), but now it has already died down. With a fork (山) he is searching in the ash (灰) for the pieces and bits of charcoal (炭) that have formed during the fire.

炭 character breakdown

炭
- 山
  - 丨
  - 凵
- 灰
  - 厂
  - 火
    - 丶
    - 人
      - 丿
      - ㇏
  - 𠂇
    - 一
    - 丿

山

sha̅n = sh + an1

mountain / hill / anything that resembles a mountain / CL:座[zuo4] / bundled straw in which silkworms spin cocoons / gable

山 = 丨 + 凵 : Mnemonic symbol: 山 looks like the tip of a fork. Sherlock Holmes (sh) is climbing a mountain (山) in front of the anthill (an1). He uses a dinosaur bone (〡) as walking stick, and to have better grip he attached a fork (山) to its tip. Unfortunately he accidentally sticks the fork into a receptacle (凵) on the ground of the mountain and gets shocked.

灰

hui̅ = hu + ei1

ash / dust / lime / gray / discouraged; dejected

灰 = 𠂇 + 火 : Helga Horse (hu) wants to cut out a piece of fire (火) in front of the Eiffel Tower (ei1) using a pair of scissors (𠂇), but every time she cuts she just gets a little bit of gray ashes (灰).

Characters with 炭 as component

碳

tàn = t + an4

carbon (chemistry)

碳 = 炭 + 石 : Tecumseh (t) further processes the charcoal (炭) he made in the anthill's bathroom (an4) into pure carbon (碳) by crushing the charcoal (炭) into its elements and exerting extreme pressure with a rock (石).

羰

ta̅ng = t + ang1

carbonyl (radical)