Fuels and Earth Science Flashcards
what are the different fossil fuels
coal
crude oil
natural gas
what are fossil fuels
non-renewable resources
what are hydrocarbons
compounds that contain hydrogen and carbon only
what is crude oil an important source of
fuels for vehicles, aircraft, ships, heating and power stations
feedstock or raw materials for the petrochemical industry
what is fuel
a substance that produces heat energy when it burns
why should we use biodiesel rather than petrol and diesel
saves fossil fuels
it is made from crops like sugarcane which are renewable
biodiesel is almost carbon neutral
what does the incomplete combustion of hydrocarbons produce
carbon(soot)
carbon monoxide
water
what two gases cause acid rain
sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide
what are the renewable sources of energy
solar power, tidal power, wind power, geothermal power
why can using only renewable sources of energy cause problems in the supply of electricity
many renewable energy supplies cannot generate electricity all the time and some energy supplies are unreliable/unpredictable
how is crude oil separated into simples, more useful mixtures
by fractional distillation because the different hydrocarbons in crude oil have different boiling points
what is a fraction
a group of molecules with similar boiling points and similar numbers of carbon and hydrogen atoms
how does fractional distillation work
crude oil is heated strongly to evaporate it, and the hot vapours are piped into the bottom of the column. The vapours rise through the column and cool down. Liquids of different boiling points condense at different temperatures and are piped away. Bitumen has the highest boiling point and leaves at the bottom as a hot liquid
what are the uses of petrol
it is used as fuel for cars
what is the use of kerosene
it is used as fuel for aircraft
what is the use of diesel oil
fuel for some cars and trains
what is the use of fuel oil
fuel for large ships and in some power stations
what is the use of bitumen
used to surface roads and roofs
why is a range boiling points given for each fraction
each fraction is a mixture of compounds
each compond has a different boiling point
how can you conclude that each fraction is a mixture of compounds and not a single compound
the fraction boils over a range of temperatures