How Carbon Chains Work

Learn how the length of hydrocarbon atom chains have different properties, producing substances such as kerosene, methane and other forms of fossil fuel. Check out this HowStuffWorks podcast to learn more about fossil fuels.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:17):
Welcome to brain Stuff from how stuff Works dot com
where smart Happens. Hi Am Marshall Brain with today's question,
what is the difference between gasoline, kerosene, diesel fuel and
so on? The crude oil pumped out of the ground
is a black liquid called petroleum. This liquid contains aliphatic hydrocarbons,

(00:39):
or hydrocarbons, composed of nothing but hydrogen and carbon, the
carbon atoms linked together in chains of different links. It
turns out that hydrocarbon molecules of different links have different
properties and behaviors. For example, a chain with just one
carbon atom in it is the lightest chain, known as methane.

(00:59):
Meth Sane is a gas so light that it floats
like helium. As the chains get longer, they get heavier.
The first four chains, methane with one carbon, ethane with
two carbons, propane with three carbons, and butane with four
carbons are all gases. The chains and the C five,
C six, and C seven range are all very light.

(01:21):
Easily vaporized clear liquids called napthas. They are used as solvents.
Dry cleaning fluids can be made from these liquids, as
well as paint solvents and other quick drying products. The
chains from C seven through C eleven are blended together
and used for gasoline. All of them vaporize at temperatures
below the boiling point of water. That's why if you

(01:43):
spill gasoline on the ground, it evaporates very quickly. Next
is kerosene in the C twelve to C fifteen range,
followed by diesel fuel and heavier fuel oils like heating
oil for houses. Next come the lubricating oils. These oils
no longer vay prize in any way at normal temperatures.
For example, engine oil can run all day at two

(02:06):
degrees fahrenheit without vaporizing at all. Oils go from very
light like three and one oil, through various thicknesses of
motor oil, through very thick gear oils, and then semi
solid greases. Petroleum jelly falls in there as well. Chains
above the C twenty range form solids, starting with paraffin wax,

(02:26):
then tar, and finally asphaltic bitumn, which is used to
make asphalt roads. All these different substances come from crude oil.
The only difference is the length of the carbon chains.
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how stuff works dot com. For more on this and

(02:49):
thousands of other topics, go to how stuff works dot com.