The Liquid Fuels

Liquid fuels are mainly made from Petroleum, but some synthetic liquids are also
produced. Petroleum is also called crude oil. They may be refined to produce gasoline, diesel oil,
and kerosene.
Other fuel oils obtained by refining petroleum to distillate oil and residual oils. Distillate
oils are light oils, which are used chiefly to heat homes and small buildings. Residual oils are
heavy, and used to provide energy to power utilities, factories and large ships.
Oil-based paint products are also highly flammable liquids.
In the process of vaporization, flammable liquids release vapor in much the same way as
solid fuels. The rate of vapor is greater for liquids than solids, since liquids have less closely
packed molecules. In addition, liquids can release vapor over a wide range, example, gasoline
starts to give vapor at –40C (-45 F).
This makes gasoline a continuous fire hazard; it produces flammable vapor at normal
temperature.

General Characteristics of Liquids

1. They are matters with definite volume but no definite shape.

2. They assume the shape of their vessel because there is free movement of molecules.
3. They are slightly compressible. They are not capable of indefinite expansion, unlike
gas.

2 General Groups of Liquid Fuels

1. Flammable liquids – they are liquids having a flash point of 37.8 C (100F) and a
vapor pressure not exceeding 40 psia (2068.6 um) at 37.8 C.
2. Combustible Liquids – these liquids have flash point at or above 37.8 C (100F).

Burning Characteristics of Liquids

Since it is the vapors from the flammable liquid which burn, the case of ignition
as well as the rate of burning can be related to the physical properties such as vapor
pressure, flash point, boiling point, and evaporation rate.

1. Liquids having vapors in the flammable range above the liquid surface at the stored
temperature have rapid rate of flame propagation.
2. Liquids having flash points above stored temperature have slower rate of flame
propagation. The chemical explanation is, it is necessary for the fire to heat
sufficiently the liquid surface to form flammable vapor-air moisture before the flame
will spread through the vapor.

Factors affecting the Rate of Flame Propagation and Burning of Liquids

 wind velocity - temperature - heat of combustion - latent heat of evaporation -

atmospheric pressure
 Latent heat is the quantity of heat absorbed by a substance from a solid to a liquid and
from a liquid to gas. Conversely, heat is released during conversion of a gas to liquid or
liquid to a solid.

The Gas Fuels

Gaseous fuels are those in which molecules are in rapid movement and random motion.
They have no definite shape or volume, and assume the shape and volume of their container.

There are both natural and manufactured flammable gases. Gas fuels flow easily through
pipes and are used to provide energy for homes, businesses, and industries. Examples of gas
fuels are acetylene, propane, and butanes.

Some properties of gas fuels are:

 compressibility – expandability - permeability (open to passage or penetration) -

diffusion (intermingling of molecules)

Compressibility and expandability refer to the potential in changes in volume. Diffusion

is the uniform distribution of molecules of one substance through those of another. Permeability
means that other substances may pass through or permeate a gas.

Early contributors in the study of gas

1. In 1640 the Belgian physician Jan van Helmont noted that the gas produced by burning
wood resembled air but did not behave quite like air. He subsequently coined the word
gas from the Flemish pronunciation of the word for chaos. Today we call the gas he
produced carbon dioxide.

2. In 1643 Evangelista Torricelli, an Italian mathematician and physicist, conducted

laboratory experiments to show that the gases in air exerted pressure and that air
supported a column of mercury 76 cm (30 in) high. In so doing, he invented the
barometer.
3. Antoine Lavoisier postulated that air was a mixture of oxygen and nitrogen and that only
one-fifth of air was oxygen. He proposed that oxygen was the part of air that combined
chemically with burning or rusting materials

Characteristics of Gas Fuels

1. They are matters that have no definite shape.

2. They are composed of very tiny particles (molecules) at constant random motion in a
straight line
3. Gas molecules collide against one another and against the wall of the container and
are relatively far from one another.
Classification of Gases:
1) Based on Source
a. Natural Gas – the gas used to heat buildings, cook food, and provides energy for
industries. It consists chiefly of methane, a colorless and odorless gas. Natural gas is
usually mixed with compounds of foul-smelling elements like sulfur so gas leaks can
be detected.

Natural Gas is a flammable gaseous mixture consisting mostly of hydrocarbons

(chemical compounds that contain carbon and hydrogen). Along with coal and petroleum,
natural gas is a fossil fuel. Natural gas may contain as much as 85 percent methane
(CH4) and about 10 percent ethane (C2H6), and also contains smaller amounts of
propane (C3H8), butane (C4H10), pentane (C5H12), and other alkanes. Natural gas, which
is usually found together with petroleum deposits in Earth’s crust, is extracted and refined
into fuels that provide approximately 25 percent of the world energy supply. Microsoft ®
Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

Butane and propane, which make up a small proportion of natural gas, become
liquids when placed under large amount of pressure. When pressure is released, they
change back to gas. Such fuels, often called Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) or liquefied
Natural Gas (LNG), are easily stored and shipped as liquid.

Natural gas contains small amounts of impurities, including carbon dioxide (CO 2),

hydrogen sulfide (H2S), and nitrogen (N2). Because these impurities can detract from the
heating value and properties of natural gas, they are often removed during the refining
process and used as commercial by-products.

Classification of natural gas

1. Dry gas has a very high methane content
2. Wet gas contains considerable amounts of hydrocarbons of higher molecular
weight known as alkanes, which include ethane, propane, and butane.
3. Residue gas is the gas remaining (mostly methane) after the alkanes have been
extracted from wet gas.
4. Sour gas contains high concentrations of hydrogen sulfide (a colorless, poisonous
gas with the odor of rotten eggs). Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation.
All rights reserved.

The non-hydrocarbon constituents of natural gas are classified as diluents and

contaminants.
1. Diluents include gases such as nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and water vapor. The
diluents are noncombustible gases that reduce the heating value of the gas.
2. Contaminants include hydrogen sulfide and other sulfur compounds. The
contaminants can damage production and transportation equipment. If burned, the
contaminants can also cause environmental problems such as air pollution and
acid rain. Acid rain forms when sulfur compounds in natural gas and other fossil
fuels, such as coal, are burned and react with atmospheric moisture to form
 sulfuric acid (H2SO4). This acidic moisture falls to the earth as precipitation that
can damage crops and forests, as well as lakes, streams, and rivers.

Processing
1. Absorption uses a liquid that absorbs the natural gas and impurities and disperses
them throughout its volume. In a process known as chemisorption, the impurities
react with the absorbing liquid. The natural gas can then be stripped from the
absorbent, while the impurities remain in the liquid. Common absorbing liquids
are water, aqueous amine solutions, and sodium carbonate.
2. Adsorption is a process that concentrates the natural gas on the surface of a solid
or a liquid in order to remove impurities. A substance commonly used for this
purpose is carbon, which has a large surface area per unit mass. For example,
sulfur compounds in natural gas collect on a carbon adsorbing surface. The sulfur
compounds are then combined with hydrogen and oxygen to form sulfuric acid
(H2SO4), which can be removed.

a. Manufactured Gas – this gas like synthetic liquid fuels is used chiefly where certain
fuels are abundant and others are scarce. Coal, petroleum, and biomass can all be
converted to gas through heating and various chemical procedures.

2) According to Physical Properties

a. Compressed Gas – gas in which at all normal temperature inside its container;
exist solely in the gaseous state under pressure. The pressure depends on the
pressure to which the container is originally charged and how much gas remains
in the container. However, temperature affects the volume and pressure of the gas.
b. Liquefied Gas – gas, which, at normal temperature inside its container, exist
partly in the liquid state and partly in gaseous state and under pressure as long as
any liquid remains in the container. The pressure basically depends on the
temperature of the liquid although the amount of liquid also affects the pressure
under some condition. A liquefied gas exhibits a more complicated behavior as
the result of heating.
c. Cryogenic Gas – a liquefied gas which exist in its container at temperature far
below normal atmospheric temperature, usually slightly above its boiling point
and correspondingly low to moderate pressure. Examples of this gas are air,
carbon monoxide, ethylene, fluorine, helium, hydrogen, methane, nitrogen, and
oxygen.

3) According to Usage

a. Fuel Gases – flammable gases usually used for burning with air to produce heat,
utilize as power, light, comfort, and process. Most commonly used gases are
natural gas and the LPG (butane and propane).
b. Industrial Gases - This group includes a large number of gases used for
industrial processes as those in welding and cutting (oxygen, acetylene);
 refrigeration (freon, ammonia, sulfur dioxide); chemical processing (hydrogen,
nitrogen, ammonia, chlorine); water treatment (chlorine, fluorine).
c. Medical Gases – those used for treatment such as anesthesia (chloroform, nitrous
oxide); respiratory therapy (oxygen).

Burning of Gaseous Fuels

Gaseous fuels are already in the required Vapor State. Only the proper intermixed with
oxygen and sufficient heat is needed for ignition. Gases like flammable liquids, always produce a
visible flame, they do not smolder.

Chemical Fuels

Chemical fuels, which are produced in solid and liquid form, create great amounts of heat
and power. They are used chiefly in rocket engines. Chemical rocket propellants consist of both
a fuel and an oxidizer. A common rocket fuel is the chemical hydrazine. The oxidizer is a
substance, such as nitrogen tetroxide, that contains oxygen. When the propellant is ignited, the
oxidizer provides the oxygen the fuel needs to burn. Chemical fuels are also used in some racing
cars.

Nuclear Fuels

Nuclear fuels provide energy through the fission or fusion of their atoms. Uranium is the
most commonly used nuclear fuel, though plutonium also provides nuclear energy. When the
atoms of these elements undergo fission, they release tremendous amounts of heat. Nuclear fuels
are used mainly to generate electricity. They also power some submarines and ships. Nuclear
energy can also be produced through the fusion of hydrogen atoms.

 Nuclear Fission – split of the nucleus of atoms (uses Uranium or Plutonium)

 Nuclear Fusion – combination of two light nuclei of atom. The process in which light
atoms such as those of hydrogen and deuterium combine and form heavier atoms,
releasing a great amount of energy, which primarily manifests itself in the form of
heat