Crude oil and its uses Flashcards
What are ‘natural materials’?
Materials obtained from natural sources (eg wool/wood)
What are ‘synthetic materials’?
Chemically made materials (eg plastic bags)
What are the advantages of synthetic materials?
More durability/lower price
Where is Crude Oil obtained from?
The Earth’s crust
What is Crude Oil a mixture of?
Many different chemicals, mostly hydrocarbons
What is the process in which the hydrocarbons are separated in crude oil?
Fractional Distillation
Why do some molecules remain lower down the tower during fractional distillation?
Because they have higher boiling points, the forces between the molecules are stronger
What are hydrocarbons with up to 4 carbon atoms?
Gases
What are hydrocarbons with between 5-16 carbon atoms?
Liquids
What are hydrocarbons with 16+ carbon atoms?
Solids
What does the process of polymerisation involve?
Small molecules (monomers) can join together to make very long molecules called polymers
How is polymerising small molecules an advantage?
A wide variety of polymers can be made, these synthetic materials have many uses
What is the ‘conversion of atoms’ in a chemical reation?
Atoms in the reactants are rearranged to make the products. The number of atoms of each element in the reactants is the same in the products. No atoms are added or taken away
What is uPVC?
A synthetic polymer, the ‘u’ means it it unplasticised so it harder and less flexible than regular PVC
