Fuel is a material like coal, gas or wood that is burned to

provide heat and produce energy.

Sources of fuel:
1.wood 3.fossil fuel
2.coal 4.natural gas
FUEL AND FUEL ADDITIVES
Gasoline is the most widely used fuel in our society.we must
begin by examining its composition. The fuel we know as gasoline
is actuallya rather complex mixture, typically containing more than
100 different chemicalcompounds. The exact composition of
gasoline varies somewhat depending on factors including the
grade of gas But the predominant
compounds are hydrocarbons, molecules containing only carbon
and hydrogen atoms. Most of the hydrocarbon molecules in
gasoline are alkanes, compounds whose carbon atoms are linked
together by single bonds. Most of the alkanes in gasoline
contain between 6 and 11 carbon atoms.
Table 4.1 lists the names and formulas of several small alkanes,
along with molecular
models showing their structures. The general formula for any
alkane is CnH2n+2,

The first ten alkanes

Compound Formula Structure
Methane CH4
Ethane C2H6
Propane C3H8
Butane C4H10
Pentane C5H12
Hexane C6H14
Heptane C7H16
Octane C8H18
Nonane C9H20
Decane C10H22

When gasoline is burned in an engine, all of these various

compounds undergo combustion simultaneously, reacting
with oxygen from the air.
Chemical reaction:

2 C8H18 + 25 O2 16 CO2 + 18 H2O

Gasoline additives increase gasoline's octane rating or

act as corrosion inhibitors or lubricants, thus allowing the
use of higher compression ratios for greater efficiency and
power. Types of additives include metal deactivators,
corrosion inhibitors, oxygenates and antioxidants.