TOPIC 8 – FUELS AND SMTH

DEFINITIONS

 Acid rain: Rain that is acidic due to gases, such as sulfur dioxide, reacting with water
vapour in the clouds. Sulfur dioxide is produced from the burning of fossil fuels which
contain sulfur impurities.
 Alkanes: The most common hydrocarbon found in crude oil. Alkanes have the general
formula CnH2n+2
 Alkenes: Alkenes are hydrocarbons with a double bond between two of the carbon
atoms in their chain, causing them to be unsaturated. They have the general formula
CnH2n
 Catalytic cracking: Long-chain hydrocarbons are heated to turn them into a gas. The
vapour is then passed over a hot powdered aluminium oxide catalyst. The long chain
molecules split apart on the surface of the catalyst.
 Climate change: A change in global climate patterns largely believed to be caused by the
increase in concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
 Combustion: The burning of a substance in oxygen causing energy to be transferred to
the surroundings as heat and light. During combustion, the carbon and hydrogen in the
fuels are oxidised.
 Complete combustion: Combustion carried out in sufficient oxygen. Water and carbon
dioxide are the only products of the complete combustion of a hydrocarbon.
 Cracking: A process that involves breaking down larger hydrocarbons to produce smaller
more useful molecules. Cracking can be done by catalytic cracking or steam cracking.
 Crude oil: A finite resource found in rocks. It is the remains of an ancient biomass
consisting mainly of plankton that was buried in mud. Most of the compounds in crude
oil are hydrocarbons.
 Finite resource: A resource which will one day run out.
 Fossil fuel: Natural fuels, such as coal and gas, formed in the past from the remains of
living organisms.
 Fractional distillation: A process used to separate a mixture of liquids. The liquids have
different boiling points so can be separated into different fractions within a fractionating
column.
 General formula: A chemical formula which applies to a class of compounds,
representing the composition of the atoms present in the compound. For example,
alkanes have the general formula CnH2n+2 Where n is the number of carbon atoms in the
molecule.
 Greenhouse effect: The increase in the temperature of the Earth's atmosphere due to
the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere trapping infra-red radiation from the surface.
 Greenhouse gases: Gases in the atmosphere which maintain temperatures on Earth high
enough to support life. Greenhouse gases include water vapour, carbon dioxide and
methane.
 Homologous series: A series of compounds with the same functional group and similar
chemical properties.
 Hydrocarbons: Molecules that are made up of hydrogen and carbon atoms only.
 Incomplete combustion: Combustion which is carried out with insufficient oxygen. It can
lead to the production of toxic carbon monoxide and carbon particulates.
 Non-renewable energy: An energy resource which is finite. Methane, petrol and diesel
oil are all examples of non-renewable fossil fuels.
 Particulates: Polluting particles which cause global dimming and health problems for
humans. Carbon particulates (soot) are a product of incomplete combustion.
 Photosynthesis: A reaction which occurs in plants and algae which led to the production
of oxygen in the early atmosphere. This simultaneously decreased the amount of carbon
dioxide in the early atmosphere. Equation for photosynthesis:
o 6CO2 + 6H2O -> C6H12O6 + 6O2
 Pollutants: A substance introduced into the environment that has undesired effects.
 Steam cracking: Long-chain hydrocarbons are heated to turn them into a gas. The
hydrocarbon vapour is then mixed with steam and heated to a very high temperature
which caused them to split into smaller molecules.

8.1 - FUELS

8.1 RECALL THAT…

 Hydrocarbons are compounds that contain carbon and hydrogen only

8.2 DESCRIBE CRUDE OIL AS:

 A complex mixture of hydrocarbons containing molecules in which carbon atoms are
chains or rings
 An important source of useful substances (fuels and feedstock for the petrochemical
industry)
 A finite resource

8.3 DESCRIBE AND EXPLAIN THE SEPARATION OF CRUDE OIL INTO SIMPLER, MORE USEFUL
MIXTURES BY THE PROCESS OF FRACTIONAL DISTILLATION
 Crude oil is a mixture of different hydrocarbons
 Different hydrocarbons have different boiling points (the longer the hydrocarbon chain,
the stronger the intermolecular bonds are and the higher the melting and boiling point
is)
 The crude oil is heated in the fractionating
column and the oil evaporates and
condenses at a number of different
temperatures
 The fractionating column works
continuously, heated crude oil is piped in at
the bottom. The vapourised oil rises up the
column and the various fractions are
constantly tapped off at the different levels
where they condense.

8.4 RECALL THE NAMES AND USES OF THE

FOLLOWING FRACTIONS:

8.5 EXPLAIN HOW HYDROCARBONS IN DIFFERENT FRACTIONS DIFFER FROM EACH OTHER
IN: THE NUMBER OF CARBON AND HYDROGEN ATOMS THEIR MOLECULES CONTAIN,
BOILING POINTS, EASE OF IGNITION, AND VISCOSITY AND ARE MOSTLY MEMBERS OF THE
ALKANE HOMOLOGOUS SERIES
 Some properties of hydrocarbons depend on the size of their molecules. These
properties influence their use as fuels.

SHORTER MOLECULES LONGER MOLECULES

Less viscous
Lower melting/ boiling point
The lower the temperature at which that
fraction evaporates and condenses
More flammable – easier to ignite
Weaker intermolecular bonds
More viscous
Higher melting/ boiling point
The higher the temperature at which that
fraction evaporates and condenses
Less flammable – harder to ignite
Stronger intermolecular bonds

8.6 EXPLAIN A HOMOLOGOUS SERIES AS A SERIES OF COMPOUNDS WHICH:

 Have the same general formula
 Differ by CH2 in molecular formular from neighbouring compounds
 Show a gradual variation in physical properties, as exemplified by their boiling points
 Have similar chemical properties

8.7 DESCRIBE THE COMPLETE COMBUSTION OF HYDROCARBON FUELS AS A REACTION IN

WHICH:
 CO2 and H2O are produced
 Energy is given out (exothermic)

8.8 EXPLAIN WHY THE INCOMPLETE COMBUSTION OF HYDROCARBONS CAN PRODUCE

CARBON AND CARBON MONOXIDE
 If there’s not enough oxygen, some of the fuel doesn’t burn – this is partial combustion.
Here, solid particles of soot (carbons) and unburnt fuel are released.
 Carbon monoxide (CO) is also released when there isn’t enough oxygen to produce CO2
instead

8.9 EXPLAIN HOW CARBON MONOXIDE BEHAVES AS A TOXIC GAS

 Carbon monoxide is a colourless and odourless gas which, if breathed in, binds to your
haemoglobin, in red blood cells, preventing oxygen from being carried around your body,
leading to oxygen deprivation and then death.

8.10 DESCRIBE THE PROBLEMS CAUSED BY INCOMPLETE COMBUSTION PRODUCING

CARBON MONOXIDE AND SOOT IN APPLIANCES THAT USE CARBON COMPOUNDS AS FUELS
 Carbon monoxide causes health problems
 Soot causes global dimming

8.11 EXPLAIN HOW IMPURITIES IN SOME HYDROCARBON FUELS RESULT IN THE

PRODUCTION IN SULFUR DIOXIDE
 Most fuels, including coal, contain carbon and/or hydrogen and may also contain some
sulfur
 When the fuels are burnt in oxygen, this sulfur can react to form sulfur dioxide
8.12 EXPLAIN SOME PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH ACID RAIN CAUSED WHEN SULFUR
DIOXIDE DISSOLVES IN RAIN WATER
 Acid rain damages buildings and statues – mostly made of limestone
 It reduces the growth of trees and crops and may kill them
 It lowers the pH of water in lakes, killing fish

8.13 EXPLAIN WHY, WHEN FUELS ARE BURNED IN ENGINES, OXUGEN AND NITROGEN CAN
REACT TOGETHER AT HIGH TEMPERATURES TO PRODUCE OXIDES OF NITROGEN, WHICH ARE
POLLUTANTS
 Nitrogen and oxygen from the air combine to produce nitrogen monoxide
 When this nitrogen monoxide is released from vehicle exhaust systems, it combines with
oxygen in the air to form nitrogen dioxide
 Nitrogen monoxide and nitrogen dioxide are pollutants

8.14 EVALUATE THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF USING HYDROGEN, RATHER

THAN PETROL, AS FUEL IN CARS
 Advantages
o Use of hydrogen – petrol is from crude oil, a finite resource
o Only produces water – no CO2 produced which contributes to global warming
 Disadvantages
o Expensive
o Difficult to transport and store hydrogen
o Dangerous – hydrogen can be explosive

8.15 RECALL THAT PETROL, KEROSENE AND DIESEL OIL ARE…

 Non-renewable fossil fuels obtained from crude oil
 And methane is a non-renewable fossil fuel found in natural gas

8.16 EXPLAIN HOW CRACKING INVOLVES THE BREAKING DOWN OF LARGER, SATURATED
HYDROCARBON MOLECULES (ALKANES) INTO SMALLER, MORE USEFUL ONES, SOME OF
WHICH ARE UNSATURATED (ALKENES)
 Hydrocarbons can be cracked to produce smaller, more useful molecules. This process
involves heating the hydrocarbons to vaporise them. The vapours are:
o Either passed over a hot catalyst
o Mixed with steam and heated to a very high temperature so that thermal
decomposition reactions can occur
 The products of cracking includes alkanes and unsaturated hydrocarbons called alkenes
o Alkenes have the general formula CnH2n
o The first two alkenes are ethene and propene
o They are unsaturated because they have a double bond

8.17 EXPLAIN WHY CRACKING IS NECESSARY

 Demand for smaller chained alkenes is much greater than that for longer chained
alkanes
 Shorter chained hydrocarbons ignite more easily and so are more useful as fuels
8.2 EARTH AND ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE

8.18 RECALL THAT THE GASSES PRODUCED BY VOLCANIC ACTIVITY FORMED THE EARTH’S
EARLY ATMOSPHERE
 There was intense volcanic activity that releases gases that formed the early atmosphere
o At the start of this period, the atmosphere may have been like the atmospheres
of Mars and Venus today, mainly CO2 with little or no O2 (gas)
o Volcanoes also produced nitrogen which gradually built up in the atmosphere
and there may have been small proportions of methane (CH4) and NH3

8.19 DESCRIBE THAT THE EARTH’S EARLY ATMOSPHERE WAS THOUGHT TO CONTAIN … AND
INTERPRET EVIDENCE RELATING TO THIS
 Earth’s early atmosphere was thought to contain little or no oxygen, a large amount of
CO2, water vapour, and small amounts of other gases (such as ammonia and methane).
 Scientists cannot be sure about the early atmosphere since it formed so long ago. They
can only analyse evidence from other sources.
o Some ancient rocks contain iron compounds that break down in the presence of
oxygen. They could only have formed if there was little or no oxygen at the time.
o A volcano releases large volumes of carbon dioxide and water vapour. Since the
early atmosphere was produced by volcanic activity, it was likely to have
contained a large amount of carbon dioxide and water vapour.

8.20 EXPLAIN HOW CONDENSATION OF WATER VAPOUR FORMED OCEANS

Water vapour condensed to form the oceans
 H2O (g) -> H2O (l)

8.21 EXPLAIN HOW THE AMOUNT OF CO2 IN THE ATMOSPHERE WAS DECREASED WHEN
CO2 DISSOLVED AS THE OCEANS FORMED
 CO2 dissolved in the water and carbonates were precipitated producing sediments,
reducing the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere

8.22 EXPLAIN HOW THE GROWTH OF PRIMITIVE PLANTS USED CO2 AND RELEASED O2 BY
PHOTOSYNTHESIS AND CONSEQUENTLY THE AMOUNT OF O2 IN THE ATMOSPHERE
GRADUALLY INCREASED
 Algae and plants produced the O2 that is now in the atmosphere by photosynthesis
o 6CO2 + 6H2O -> C6H12O6 + 6O2
o Carbon dioxide + water –(light and chlorophyll)-> glucose + oxygen
 Algae first produced oxygen about 2.7 billion years ago and soon after this oxygen
appeared in the atmosphere
 Over the next billion years, plants evolved and the percentage of oxygen gradually
increased to a level that enabled animals to evolve
 Algae and plants decreased the percentage of CO2 in the atmosphere by photosynthesis

8.23 DESCRIBE THE CHEMICAL TEST FOR O2

 Insert a glowing splint into a test tube of the gas
 The splint will relight in the oxygen
8.24 DESCRIBE HOW VARIOUS GASES IN THE ATMOSPHERE, INCLUDING CO2, CH4 AND
WATER VAPOUR, ABSORB HEAT RADIATED FROM THE EARTH, SUBSEQUENTLY RELEASING
ENERGY WHICH KEEPS THE EARTH WARM – GREENHOUSE EFFECT
 Electromagnetic radiation at most wavelengths from the sun passes through the earth’s
atmosphere
 The earth absorbs some radiation and thus warms up which is essential for life on Earth),
but some heat is radiated from the Earth as infrared radiation
 Some of this infrared radiation is absorbed by greenhouse gases in the atmosphere,
which then warms up leading to the greenhouse effect and global warming

8.25 EVALUATE THE EVIDENCE FOR HUMAN ACTIVITY CAUSING CLIMATE CHANGE,
CONSIDERING: THE CORRELATION BETWEEN THE CHANGE IN ATMOSPHERIC CARBON
DIOXIDE CONCENTRATION, THE CONSUMPTION OF FOSSIL FUELS AND TEMPERATURE
CHANGE, AND THE UNCERTAINTIES CAUSED BY THE LOCATION WHERE THESE
MEASUREMENTS ARE TAKEN AND HISTORICAL ACCURACY

8.26 DESCRIBE: THE POTENTIAL EFFECTS ON THE CLIMATE OF INCREASED LEVELS OF CO 2

AND CH4 GENERATED BY HUMAN ACTIVITY, INCLUDING BURNING FOSSIL FUELS AND
LIVESTOCK FARMING AND THAT THESE EFFECTS MAY BE MITIGATED: CONSIDER SCALE, RISK
AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPLICATIONS
 Activities increase levels of CO2 & CH4
 Examples of human activity include:
o Driving (CO2)
o Consuming electricity (CO2)
o Raising livestock (cows – CH4)
o Decay of organic waste in landfill sites (CH4)
 Based on peer-reviewed evidence, many scientists believe that human activities will
cause the temperature of the Earth’s atmosphere to increase at the surface and that this
will result in global climate change
o But it is difficult to model such complex systems as global climate change
o This leads to simplified models, speculation and opinions presented in the media
that may be based on only parts of the evidence which may be biased.