Alkanes Flashcards
how to name alkanes ?
find the longest chain
find the methyl group and its position on the c chain
then state the position of the methyl group and include the name of the carbon chain.
what is meant by an alkane ?
alkanes are saturated hydrocarbons with the general formula CnH2n+2
alkanes are hydrocarbons #. what is meant by a hydrocarbon ?
a compound that contains only hydrogen and carbon atoms
what is meant by alkanes being saturated ?
it means that each carbon is bonded 4 times with the maximum number of hydrogens possible
what are cycloalkanes described as in terms of being saturated ?
cycloalkanes are still saturated
what kind of isomer of alkanes are cycloalkanes ?
functional group isomers
what is the general formula of cycloalkanes ?
CnH2n
where are alkanes found in ?
crude oil
what is another word for crude oil ?
petroleum
what is crude oil / petroleum ?
a mixture of different length hydrocarbons
how can we separate crude oil ?
using a fractionating column that uses fractional distillation
why does crude oil need to be separated ?
so that it can be separated into smaller more useful alkanes called fractions
1st stage of fractional distillation
crude oil is vaporised in a blast furnace to about 350C so that it turns into a gas
2nd stage
vaporised crude oil goes into a fractionating column and rises up through the trays. the longest hydrocarbons don’t vaporise and run down to the bottom to form a gooey residue
why do the longest hydrocarbons not vaporise and run to the bottom ?
because their boiling points are too high.
what does the column have in terms of temperature ?
the column has a temperature gradient. it is cooler at the top and hotter at the bottom
why is it that as the vapour rises, parts of the mixture condense at different temperatures ?
- because there are different chain lengths and hence different boiling points
what happens to the shortest hydrocarbons ? and why ?
they won’t condense so will come off as gases at the top of the column
- because they have the lowest boiling points
fraction = gases
number of carbons + uses ?
1-4 carbons
-liquified petroleum gas (LPG)
-camping gas
fraction = petrol (gasoline)
number of carbons + uses ?
temp ?
5-12 carbons
- petrol
40 C
fraction = naphtha
number of carbons and uses ? temp ?
7-14 carbons
-processed to make petrochemicals
110 C
fraction = kerosene (paraffin)
number of carbons and uses ? temp ?
11-15 carbons
- jet fuel
- petrochemicals
- central heating fuel
180 C
fraction = gas oil (diesel)
number of carbons + uses ?
temp ?
15-19 carbons
- diesel fuel
- central heating fuel
250 C
fraction = mineral oil (lubricating )
number of carbon + uses ?
temp ?
20-30 carbons
- lubricating oil
340 C
what are the fractions called in the residue at the bottom of the fractionating column ?
- fuel oil
- waxes
- grease
- bitumen
fraction = fuel oil
number of carbons + uses ?
30-40 carbons
- fuel for ships and power stations
fraction = wax , grease
number of carbons + uses ?
40-50
-candles
- lubrication