Classification Of Fuels 584w1y

CLASSIFICATION OF FUELS

1. Solid Fuels Solid fuel refers to various types of solid material that are used as fuel to produce energy and provide heating, usually released through combustion. a. Wood- Wood is a unique fuel source in that it is a renewable resource.[5] It is also greenhouse gas neutral which means that the log being burned cannot produce any more carbon than was used by it during its life. b. Charcoal – Charcoal is a light, black residue, consisting of carbon (C) and any remaining ash, obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of oxygen. c. Peat - Peat is a form of coal. In the life cycle of coal, biomass decomposes over thousands of years and becomes peat and then after thousands more years, becomes lignite, and then coal. Once it is dried, peat becomes extremely volatile. d. Hexamine fuel tablet – A hexamine fuel tablet is a form of solid fuel in tablet form. The tablets burn smokelessly, has a high energy density and do not liquefy while burning and leave no ashes. e. Biomass is plant material taken to be used as fuel. While wood is a type of biomass, other plants commonly used for fuel include wheat, straw, nut shells, or any fibrous material. f. Coke is a coal-like fuel source that is produced by heating natural coal in specialized containers to burn only the oily surface off of the coal. The result is a hard brick that while difficult to light, can last extremely long. g. Briquettes are generally non-organic blocks of fuel that are made of compressed minerals. Their flames will last long periods of time. h. Coal – Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. Coal fuels are classified into three. i. Anthracite is a smokeless coal that was formed over the course of over three hundred million years. Its density allows it to burn for long periods of time without producing very much smoke. Also due to its density, it is very difficult to light and often requires the use of a second, easier burning fuel to help in the process. ii. Bituminous coal is made from wood compressed by the earth's crust and aged about one hundred million years. The coal is economically efficient and the flame produced is highly desirable with low ash output. However, the smoke produced by this fuel is dark and contains flammable gasses that, if not properly contained, can produce a dangerous environment. iii. Lignite is another stage in the coal making process. This fuel burns relatively easily. A disadvantage is that it will produce large amounts of ash. 2. Liquid Fuels Liquid fuels are combustible or energy-generating molecules that can be harnessed to create mechanical energy, usually producing kinetic energy; they also must take the shape of their container. It is the fumes of liquid fuels that are flammable instead of the fluid. a. Gasoline (CnH1.87n) – liquid - mixture of volatile, flammable liquid hydrocarbons derived from petroleum and used as fuel for internalcombustion engines. b. Diesel (C12H23) is similar to gasoline in that it is a mixture of aliphatic hydrocarbons extracted from petroleum. c. Kerosene (C12H26 to C15H32), also known as lamp oil, is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid widely used as a fuel in industry and households. d. Liquid Petroleum gas is a mixture of propane and butane, both of which are easily compressible gases under standard atmospheric conditions.

e. Ammonia (NH3) has been used as a fuel before at times when gasoline is unavailable. It has a volumetric energy density of 17 Megajoules per liter. It must be compressed or cooled to be a liquid fuel. f. Biodiesel is similar to diesel, but has differences akin to those between petrol and ethanol. g. Methanol (CH4O) - At room temperature, it is a polar liquid, and is used as an antifreeze, solvent, fuel, and as a denaturant for ethanol. It is also used for producing biodiesel via transesterification reaction. h. Ethanol (C2H6O) – It is most often used as a motor fuel, mainly as a biofuel additive for gasoline. i. Pentene (C5H10) – It is incompatible with strong oxidizing agents. Highly flammable - readily forms explosive mixtures with air. j. Isopentane (C5H12) – It is an extremely volatile and extremely flammable liquid at room temperature and pressure. The normal boiling point is just a few degrees above room temperature and it will readily boil and evaporate away on a warm day. k. Benzene (C6H6) – It is a natural constituent of crude oil, and is one of the most elementary petrochemicals. l. Hexene (C6H12) – The primary use of hexene is as a comonomer in production of polyethylene. m. Hexane (C6H14) –It is a colorless liquid at room temperature, odorless when pure, with boiling point between 50 and 70 °C. It is widely used as a cheap, relatively safe, largely unreactive, and easily evaporated non-polar solvent. n. Toluene (C7H8) – It is used in the blending of petrol and as an additive to racing fuel. o. Heptane (C7H16) –At room temperature, heptane is a colorless liquid with a gasoline-like odor. It readily gives off fumes, and both the liquid and the fumes are highly flammable. p. Octane (C8H18) – It is a component of gasoline (petrol). As with all low molecular weight hydrocarbons, octane is volatile and very flammable. q. Decane (C8H22) – It is a component of gasoline (petrol). Like other alkanes, it is nonpolar and does not dissolve in polar liquids, such as water. It has a surface tension of 0.0238 N·m−1. r. Avgas (aviation gasoline), is an aviation fuel used in spark-ignited internalcombustion engines to propel aircraft. s. Bunker fuel is the generic term given to any fuel poured into a ship's bunkers to power its engines. t. Asphalt (petroleum) is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semisolid that is present in most petroleum crude oils and in some natural deposits. u. Naphtha (petroleum) is an intermediate hydrocarbon liquid stream derived from the refining of crude oil. v. Compressed natural gas - Natural gas, composed chiefly of methane, can be compressed to a liquid and used as a substitute for other traditional liquid fuels. 3. Gas Fuels Fuel gas is any one of a number of fuels that under ordinary conditions are gaseous. Many fuel gases are composed of hydrocarbons (such as methane or propane), hydrogen, carbon monoxide, or mixtures thereof. a. Hydrogen (H2) –Hydrogen has the highest energy-to-weight ratio of all fuels: 1 kilogram (kg) of hydrogen has the same amount of energy as 2.1 kg of natural gas or 2.8 kg of gasoline. b. Carbon monoxide (CO) – It is an important industrial gas, which is widely used as a fuel. c. Methane (CH4) – It is the simplest alkane and the main component of natural gas. The relative abundance of methane makes it an attractive fuel, though capturing and storing it poses challenges due to its gaseous state found at standard conditions for temperature and pressure.

d. Acetylene (C2H2) is the chemical compound hydrocarbon and the simplest alkyne. This colorless gas is widely used as a fuel and a chemical building block. e. Ethane (C2H6) is a colorless, odorless gas at standard room temperature. Like many hydrocarbons, it is isolated on an industrial scale from natural gas and as a petrochemical byproduct of petroleum refining. Its chief use is as feedstock for ethylene production. f. Propane (C3H8) – It is also known as propane auto gas and has been used worldwide as a vehicle fuel for decades. g. Butane (C4H10) – It is used for gasoline blending, as a fuel gas, either alone or in a mixture with propane, and as a feedstock for the manufacture of ethylene and butadiene, a key ingredient of synthetic rubber. h. Natural gas (CnH3.8nNo.1n) – gas -an energy source often used for heating, cooking, and electricity generation. It is also used as fuel for vehicles and as a chemical feedstock in the manufacture of plastics and other commercially important organic chemicals.

References: 

"The Guide to Solid Fuels" (PDF). Solid Fuel Association. Retrieved 19

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July 2016. "Guide To Solid Fuel". Coal Products Ltd. Retrieved 19 July 2016. Ratcliff, Brian; et al. (2000). Chemistry 1. Cambridge University press. ISBN 0-

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521-78778-5 "AccessScience | Encyclopedia Article | Alcohol fuel". Accessscience.com. Retrieved 2016-07-19