17.1 Petroleum: A Fossil Fuel

Question 1

Name 3 fossil fuels.

Answer 1

Petroleum
Coal
Natural gas

Question 2

How was petroleum formed?

Answer 2

Formed from remains of dead organisms that fell to the ocean floor, and were buried under thick sediment. High pressures slowly converted them to petroleum.

Question 3

How is Natural gas formed? What is natural gas mainly composed of?

Answer 3

Formed in the same way as petrol, BUT higher pressures and temperatures caused the compounds to break down to gas.

It’s mainly methane

Question 4

How was coal formed?

Answer 4

From the remains of lush vegetation that grew in ancient swamps that got buried under thick sediment. Pressure + heat converted it into coal.

Question 5

What is petroleum?

Answer 5

It’s a smelly mixture of hundreds different compounds. They are organic compounds.

Question 6

What is an organic compound?

Answer 6

It contains Carbon , and usually hydrogen. Most are hydrocarbons.

Question 7

What is a structural formula? What are the types of structural chains?

Answer 7

When a formula is drown out.
There are straight chains
Branched chains
And chains that form rings

Question 8

List 3 uses of petroleum.

Answer 8

1. Most is used for transport, provides fuels for cars, trucks, etc.
2. A lot is burned for heat in factories, homes, power stations. The heat is used to turn water to steam to drive turbines.
3. A small % is used as the starting chemical to make other things like plastics, shampoo, paint, makeup, medical drugs, fabrics etc.

Question 9

Why is petroleum called a non - renewable resource?

Answer 9

It will run out sooner than it can form, so it will run out and then take millions of years to form do it is considered non - renewable.