Crude OilOxford AQA IGCSE Chemistry: Flashcards

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What is crude oil?

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What is crude oil?: A mixture of a very large number of compounds, mostly hydrocarbons.
What is a hydrocarbon?: A molecule made up of hydrogen and carbon atoms only.
What is the general formula of the alkanes?: CnH2n+2.
What type of bonds are found between carbons in alkanes?: Single covalent bonds (they are saturated).
Name the first three alkanes.: Methane, ethane, propane.
What process separates crude oil into fractions?: Fractional distillation.
Describe the temperature gradient in a fractionating column.: Hotter at the bottom, cooler at the top.
Why do different fractions condense at different heights in the column?: Because they have different boiling points.
What happens to boiling point as hydrocarbon chain length increases?: It increases.
What happens to viscosity as hydrocarbon chain length increases?: It increases (the liquid becomes thicker).
What happens to flammability as hydrocarbon chain length increases?: It decreases.
What is a fraction, in the context of crude oil?: A mixture of hydrocarbons with similar chain length and boiling point, separated from crude oil.
What is the molecular formula of methane?: CH4.