Fuels

Fuels

1. Fossil Fuels

   • Finite Resource
   • Examples: oil, coal, peat and natural gas
   • Hydrocarbons with minor impurities
   • Formation
     • Coal and peat; dead plants fell into swamps and didn't rot. They were buried deeper over thousands of years until eventually peat formed
     • Crude oil and natural gas; Tiny dead sea creatures didn't rot at the bottom of the sea and they were buried deeper over thousands of years until eventually oil and gas were formed
     • Energy from the sun is captured in chemical bonds through processes such as photosynthesis and respiration

2. Combustion releases the energy when the fuels burned

3. Complete combustion products are water (H2O) and Carbon Dioxide (CO2)

4. Eh=cm/_\T

   • Eh - Kj (heat energy)
   • c - specific heat capacity of water (4.18 KJkg-1oC-1)
   • m - mass of water in kg (1ml=1g)
   • /_\T - the change in temperature of the water

5. Fractional Distillation

   • a fraction is a group of hydrocarbons with a boiling point within a certain range
   • Viscosity - lighter fractions are runnier than heavier ones
   • The way in which crude oil is refined
   • Flammability - lighter fractions have a higher flammability