How is ethanol made and what are the advantages and disadvantages?
Made by fermentation of plants
Carbon dioxide released was taken in by the plant as it grew and the only other product is water
Engines need to be converted to work with ethanol and it isn’t widely available
What is a mixture?
A mixture consists of multiple elements or compounds that aren’t chemically bonded to each other
How is biodiesel made and what are its advantages and disadvantages?
Produced from vegetable oils
Carbon neutral, engines don’t need conversion, produces hardly any sulphur dioxide or particulates
Can’t be made fast enough to replace diesel and it is expensive to make
What is the problem with releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere?
Causes global warming which causes other types of climate change and risk of flooding due to the polar ice caps melting
What are the 3 alternative fuels to hydrocarbons?
Ethanol
Biodiesel
Hydrogen gas
What are the 2 other ways of reducing sulphur emissions?
Reduce usage of fossil fuels
Power stations have acid gas scrubbers to take harmful gases out before fumes are released into the atmosphere
What 2 products do we usually get from cracking?
Fuels like petrol and paraffin
Simple hydrocarbons like ethene which is needed for making plastics
What happens when there isn’t enough oxygen and what is this called?
When partial combustion happens, solid particles (particulates) of soot (carbon), unburnt fuel and carbon monoxide are released
What does cracking turn diesel into?
Petrol, paraffin and ethene
Describe how acid rain is caused
Sulphur dioxide is released into the air as a by-product of burning hydrocarbons
Sulphur dioxide mixes with clouds to form sulphuric acid which falks to the ground as acid rain
How does burning hydrocarbons cause acid rain?
The sulphur impurities in the oil is released as sulphur dioxide when the fuel is burned
Why is petrol suitable for car fuel?
A liquid can be stored in the engine easily
It is easily vaporised so it can mix with the air before ignition
What does saturated mean?
When all atoms have made bonds with as many other atoms as they can
Only single bonds
What are very viscous hydrocarbons used for?
Lubricating engine parts and covering roads
Why is refinery gas suitable for use as bottled gas?
Its volatility allows it to be used as a gas at room temperature
How do branching chains or lined-up chains affect a plastic?
Branching chains are softer, easier to melt and lower density
What are the 3 basic trends of hydrocarbons?
The shorter the molecules, the less viscous (less gloopy) it is
The shorter the molecules, the more volatile it is (turn into gas at lower temperature)
The shorter the molecules, the more flammable it is
What are the 3 disadvantages of crude oil?
It is limited and unsustainable
Burning them creates pollution
The ways that we obtain crude oil can scar the landscape
What type of reaction does cracking use?
Thermal decomposition
What is complete combustion?
When there is enough oxygen and all of the fuel is burned
Describe the procedure of cracking
The long-chain hydrocarbon is heated until it is vapourised
The vapour is passed over the powdered catalyst which is aluminium oxide at a temperature of 400 to 700 degrees C
The long-chain molecules split apart on the surface of the specks of aluminium oxide
What are the 2 environmental problems with crude oil?
Oil spills can cause damage to animals
Burning it to release energy causes global warming, global dimming and acid rain
What is the chemical equation for burning a hydrocarbon?
Hydrocarbon + oxygen
–> carbon dioxide + water vapour
What is the place where fractional distillation happens called?
The fractionating column