Energy Engineering

Liquid Fuels

Dr. M. Azam Saeed

 Crude Oil Formation
Petroleum or crude oil, is not a single chemical compound
Liquid petroleum, or oil, comprises a variety of liquid
hydrocarbon compounds, which are made up of long
molecular strings of carbon and hydrogen
There are also a variety of gaseous hydrocarbons,
collectively called natural gas, of which the compound
methane (CH4) is the most common
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Most geologists believe that crude oil and natural gas are the
product of compression and heating of ancient organic materials
over long geological time
According to this theory, oil is formed from the preserved
remains and algae which have settled to the ocean bottom and
are buried in large quantities under anaerobic conditions (no
oxygen)
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Over geological time this organic matter, mixed with
mud, is buried under heavy layers of sediment
As burial continues, the pressure and the temperature
both increase, and chemical changes begin to occur
The large, complex organic molecules are slowly
broken down into long chains of hydrocarbon
molecules, which have the consistency of asphalt
Specifically, the organic
molecules change into a
waxy material known as
kerogen
With time and if the kerogen
is subjected to increased
pressure and heat, it is
further changed into liquid
and gaseous hydrocarbons
in a process known as
catagenesis
What is crude oil?
Crude oil is a fossil fuel and
one of the most important
substances in the world. It is a
mixture of hundreds of
different compounds.

Crude oil is used to make fuels for transport, heating and

generating electricity.
It is also used to make plastics and hundreds of different
types of chemicals.

Every day, the world uses over 70 million barrels of oil.

 Crude oil: a brief history
The modern oil industry began in the mid-19th century when
kerosene was distilled from crude oil and used as cheap and
clean-burning fuel for lamps.

Source: UPRM Geology Department

 Crude oil: a brief history
Gasoline was a by-product in kerosene production, and was
initially used as a solvent.

It wasn’t until the development of the internal combustion

engine and gasoline-powered cars in the late 19th century
that gasoline became highly valuable.

This led to a great increase in the demand for crude oil,

which has continued to this day.
Finding crude oil at sea
Crude oil is often found trapped in rocks of the sea bed.

Oil rigs or drilling

platforms are used to
drill through the sea
bed to obtain the oil.

Once the oil has been

removed from the sea
bed, it is pumped in long
pipelines to an oil tanker
terminal or an oil refinery
on land.
When will crude oil run out?
It is difficult to say when crude oil
will run out because no-one knows
exactly how much oil there is left in
the world.

There are over 1 trillion (1 million

million) barrels of crude oil in
proven oil reserves

At current rates, this will last about 44 years, but the amount
of oil used in the world increases each year.

Some scientists believe there is a lot more oil still to find,

but others think that most oil has already been discovered.
 When will crude oil run out?
 It is not necessary that oil is found near the place
where it is originated. It may be migrated to several
km from the source rock.
 Oil reservoirs are bounded by layer of impervious
rock known as cap and below a layer of second
impervious rock. The region between these two
layers is filled with porous rock such as sand stone
which contain oil or gas in its pours. Oil flows in
porous rock until it reaches impervious rock. When
there is gap in cap rock, asphalt or natural bitumen
or pitch (a sticky, black, and highly viscous liquid or
semi-solid form of petroleum) is obtained.
 Problems with crude oil
Crude oil is extremely useful but it has several drawbacks:
 Burning the products of crude oil as fuel produces gases
and particles that contribute to global warming and air
pollution.

 Removing oil from the

ground, as well as oil
spillages will be very
damaging to wildlife and
the environment.

 The high value of oil means it is sometimes the cause of

military conflict, especially because a large amount of oil
comes from countries that are politically unstable.
Hydrocarbons in crude oil
Many compounds in crude oil only contain the elements
carbon and hydrogen. They are called hydrocarbons.

Most hydrocarbons in crude oil are compounds called

alkanes. Alkanes contain a single chain of carbon atoms
with hydrogen atoms bonded along the side.
Alkanes or paraffin?
Alkanes or paraffin are a family of hydrocarbon compounds
with the general formula CnH2n+2.

 The simplest alkane is methane.

It has the formula CH4.

 The second simplest alkane is

ethane. It has the formula C2H6.

 The third simplest alkane is

propane. It has the formula C3H8.
How can crude oil be made useful?
Crude oil itself has no uses – it must first be processed or
refined. This is done in an oil refinery.

The first step is to

separate
compounds in the
oil into groups
called fractions.

Each fraction
contains a mix of
compounds with
a similar number
of carbon atoms.
Molecule size and boiling point
Molecules in crude oil can contain anything from just
1 carbon atom to well over 50.

The more carbon atoms in a hydrocarbon molecule, the

larger the molecule. How does this affect its boiling point?

Generally, the larger a hydrocarbon,

the higher its boiling point.

This is because the intermolecular forces between large

molecules are stronger than the intermolecular forces
between small molecules.
More energy is needed to break the forces between large
molecules, and so the boiling point is higher.
Hydrocarbons and crude oil
Crude oil is a mixture of HYDROCARBONS
(compounds made up of carbon and hydrogen).
Some examples:

H H
Longer chains mean…

Increasing length
H C C H
H H 1. Less ability to flow
Ethane
2. Less flammable
H H H H
H C C C C H 3. Less volatile
H H H H
Butane 4. Higher boiling point
 Fractional distillation

Crude oil can be separated by fractional distillation. The oil is evaporated

and the hydrocarbon chains of different lengths condense at different
temperatures:

Fractions with
low boiling
points condense
at the top

Fractions with
high boiling
points condense
at the bottom
What is fractional distillation?
Fractional distillation is a process used to separate a
mixture of liquids that have different boiling points.
When the mixture is heated, liquids with a low boiling point
evaporate and turn to vapour.

Liquids with a higher boiling point remain

as liquid. The vapour can then be
separated from the liquid.

Fractional distillation is used to separate

crude oil into fractions with different
boiling points. It can be done industrially
and in the laboratory.
Fractional distillation of crude oil
Crude oil is separated into fractions by fractional distillation.
1. Oil is heated to about 450 °C and pumped
into the bottom of a tall tower called a
fractionating column, where it vaporizes.
2. The column is very hot at the bottom but
much cooler at the top. As the vaporized oil
rises, it cools and condenses.
3. Heavy fractions (containing large molecules)
have a high boiling point and condense near
the bottom of the column.
4. Lighter fractions (containing small molecules)
have a lower boiling point and condense
further up the column.
 Order of fractions
Number of Boiling Point
Name Uses
Carbon Atoms (°C)
Bottled Gas
Refinery Gas 3 or 4 below 30
(propane or butane).
Fuel for car
Petrol 7 to 9 100 to 150
engines.
Solvents
Naphtha 6 to 11 70 to 200
and used in petrol.
Fuel for aircraft
Kerosene (paraffin) 11 to 18 200 to 300
and stoves.
Fuel for road vehicles
Diesel Oil 11 to 18 200 to 300
and trains.
Lubricant for engines
Lubricating Oil 18 to 25 300 to 400
and machines.
Fuel for ships, heating
Fuel Oil 20 to 27 350 to 450
and power stations.
Lubricants
Greases and Wax 25 to 30 400 to 500
and candles.
Road surface
Bitumen above 35 above 500
and roofing.
Supply and demand
The amount of each type of fraction obtained by fractional
distillation does not usually match the amount of each
fraction that is needed.
Crude oil often contains
more heavier fractions than
lighter fractions, which are
more useful and therefore
more desirable.
The large hydrocarbon molecules
in the heavier fractions can be
broken down into smaller, more
useful, molecules to meet
demand for raw materials for
fuels and plastics.
Catalytic cracking
Large hydrocarbon molecules can be broken down into
smaller molecules using a catalyst. This is called catalytic
cracking.

The hydrocarbon molecules are heated until they turn into

vapour, and then mixed with a catalyst. The type of reaction in
catalytic cracking is called thermal decomposition.

The smaller molecules produced by catalytic cracking are a

mixture of alkanes and alkenes.

Alkenes are reactive molecules that are used to make

plastics and other chemicals.
What are alkenes?
Alkenes are a family of hydrocarbon compounds with the
general formula CnH2n.

Alkenes are very similar to alkanes, but they have one

important difference: they contain at least one double
covalent bond between carbon atoms.

 The simplest alkene is ethene.

It has the formula C2H4.

 The second simplest alkene is

propene. It has the formula
C3H6.
Cracking decane
Decane from the naphtha fraction can be cracked to form
pentane (for use in petrol), propene and ethene.

decane
(C10H22)

+  +

pentane propene ethene

(C5H12) (C3H6) (C2H4)
Saturated vs. unsaturated
Alkanes are examples of saturated compounds.

A saturated compound only contains single

covalent bonds between carbon atoms.

Alkenes are examples of unsaturated compounds.

An unsaturated compound contains at least one

double covalent bond between carbon atoms.

A test to distinguish between saturated and unsaturated

compounds is to add red bromine water. In the presence of
unsaturated compounds, the red colour disappears.
Removing impurities
An important step in refining is removing impurities from
fractions. These can damage equipment that uses the
fraction, and cause pollution.

One of the most

important impurities to
remove is sulfur. When
burnt, this forms the gas
sulfur dioxide, which
causes acid rain.

Other impurities that need to be removed include nitrogen,

oxygen, water and dissolved metals.
 Thank You

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