C9-11 - Crude Oil and Polymers
No description yet. This curated deck is ready for daily study.
Card preview (24)
What is crude oil?
A mixture of hydrocarbons
What is crude oil formed from?
The remains of ancient biomass (mostly plankton) that was buried in mud
What is a finite resource?
One that will run out
Why is crude oil a finite resource?
It takes longer to form than the rate at which we are using it up
What is a hydrocarbon?
A compound made up of carbon and hydrogen only
What is a general formula?
A mathematical formula which allows you to work out the chemical formula of a substance
What is an alkane?
A hydrocarbon with only single bonds
Name the first four alkanes
Methane ethane propane butane
What is the general formula for alkanes?
CnH2n+2
How does the boiling point change with the length of an alkane?
The longer the alkane the higher the boiling point
How does the viscosity change with the length of an alkane?
The longer the alkanes the more viscous (thicker) it is
How does the flammability change with the length of an alkane?
The shorter the alkane the more flammable it is
What is fractional distillation?
A process used to separate mixtures of substances with different boiling points
What are the steps involved in fractional distillation?
Crude oil is vaporized The column is hotter at the bottom and cooler at the top The molecules travel up the column and condense at different points depending on their boiling points. Smaller molecules condense at the top larger molecules at the bottom
Why is fractional distillation important?
The different fractions have different uses
What is a fuel?
A substance which when reacted with oxygen releases energy
Name fuels we obtain from crude oil
Petrol diesel kerosene heavy fuel oil liquid petroleum gases
What other uses are there for products of fractional distillation?
Solvents lubricants polymers and detergents
What is combustion?
The reaction of a fuel with oxygen
What are the products of complete combustion?
Carbon dioxide and water
When does incomplete combustion occur?
When there is not enough oxygen present
What is cracking?
The process of breaking down long hydrocarbons into smaller ones.
What are the products of cracking?
Short alkanes and alkenes
Why is cracking important?
Smaller hydrocarbons are more useful than longer ones