3.3.2 Alkanes Flashcards
Coal is high in _____/______, and large amounts of _____/_____ are emitted from _____/_______.
Coal is high in sulfur content, and large amounts of sulfur oxides are emitted from power stations
State the conditions for catalytic cracking.
450°C
Slight pressure
Zeolite catalysts
What is petroleum?
A mixture consisting of mainly alkane hydrocarbons
What is a petroleum fraction?
A mixture of hydrocarbons with a similar chain length and similar boiling point
Describe the steps of the fractional distillation of crude oil (7)
- Crude oil is vaporised
- The tower is cooler at the top (negative temperature gradient)
- Vaporised crude oil enters the bottom and rises up the tower
- Fractions have different boiling points
- Each fraction condenses at the level where the temperature is lower than its boiling point
- Larger molecules (high bpt) condense lower in the tower
- Small molecules (low bpt) rise to the top of the tower
What are the different fractions of crude oil and their boiling points?
GOOGLE DOC
What is vacuum distillation and it’s purpose?
This is will heavy residues from the fractionating column are distilled again under a vacuum, which will make them more volatile.
It allows the heavier fractions to be separated without high temperatures, which could break them down.
How do we carry out fractional distillation in a lab?
Fractional distillation separates liquids with different boiling points
1) Heat the flask with bunsen burner
2) Vapours from the components are produced
3) Vapour of the substance with the lower boiling point reaches the top of the fractionating column first
4) Vapours with higher boiling points will condense back into the flask
5) The most volatile vapour passes into the condenser
6) The condenser cools the vapours and condenses them to a liquid
What is cracking?
conversion of large hydrocarbons to smaller, more useful hydrocarbon molecules by breaking C-C bonds
Why does cracking require high temperatures?
It’s a chemical process involving the splitting of strong covalent bonds, which requires lots of energy
What are the 3 economic reasons for cracking?
➤ Fractions of shorter C chains are more in demand
➤ To make use of excess larger hydrocarbons and to supply demand for shorter ones
➤ Products of crackign are more valiable than the starting materials
Describe Catalytic Cracking (3)
Catalytic Cracking
➤ slight/moderate presure, high temperature, zeolite catalyst
➤ produces branched, cyclic alkanes
➤ used mainly to produce motor fuels and aromatic hydrocarbons
What are the two types of cracking?
Catalytic
Thermal
What are fuels?
Compounds that release heat energy when burnt
What are alkanes used as?
Fuels
Describe the two types of combustion
Complete Combustion
➤ Excess oxygen
➤ Products are CO2 and H2O
Incomplete Combustion
➤ Limited amount of oxygen
➤ Products are CO and H2O and sometimes C ( soot )
Explain why alkanes are used as fuels
They readily burn in the precense of oxygen. Their combustion is highly exothermic.
What can soot cause?
Global dimming - reflection of the sun’s light
Internal combustion engines can produce a number of pollutants, give exmaples.
NOx CO, C, unburned hydrocarbons, SOx
Explain how the sulfur in petroleum fractions can lead to pollution
Petroleum fractions contain sulfur.
When the sulfur burns, it produces SO2.
SO2 will dissolve in atmospheric water and can produce acid rain.