A combination of hydrocarbons and other naturally occurring materials make up crude oil. It is also called crude petroleum, natural oil, and tar oil. Crude oil is mainly used to produce gasoline, diesel, jet fuel (through a process known as hydrofilling), liquefied natural gas (LNG), and other petrochemical products. But does crude oil burn?
WHAT IS BURNING?
As a fuel (anything that releases energy when it burns) and oxygen interact chemically, it forms a fire. Burning releases heat energy that is used for many different types of work, for example, to generate electricity in power plants or to cook meals in kitchens.
Many different types of fuels can be burned. In contrast to fossil fuels like crude oil and natural gas, which occasionally are used to produce electricity, wood is a renewable fuel source that may be burned in stoves or fireplaces.
HOW DOES CRUDE OIL BURN?
A combustion reaction happens between the hydrocarbons in crude oil and oxygen in the air. This reaction creates carbon dioxide, water, and a lot of heat.
The reaction between oxygen and the hydrocarbon molecules of crude oil creates carbon dioxide and water: CO + O 2 = CO 2 + Energy. The combustion reaction between oxygen and hydrocarbons releases around 8,700 BTU per pound of crude oil. If a specific energy source is needed, then crude oil can be refined to produce different fuels.
How Much Energy Does Crude Oil Provide?
A typical barrel of crude oil contains about 5,800 BTU of energy. The energy content of the different crude oil types varies, depending on the crude source. For example, crude oil from a desert well has a lower energy content than crude extracted from a tropical swamp.
This energy content can vary because crude oil contains several chemical components, including pentanes, hexanes, heptanes, octanes, and nonanes. Crude oil processed through hydro refining typically yields gasoline, kerosene, diesel, and petroleum coke.
This oil processed through hydrocracking typically yields diesel, kerosene, and naphtha. Crude oil processed through catalytic cracking yields gasoline, kerosene, and light distillates.
Why Do We Use Crude Oil To Produce Other Fuels?
The biggest reason we use crude oil to produce other fuels is that all fuels have different burning properties. For example, the crude oil used to produce jet fuel burns at a lower temperature than the crude oil used to produce gasoline. A burner that burns jet fuel at a given temperature will produce a different amount of energy than one that burns gasoline at the same temperature.