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Answers to Readers' Questions on Chemistry:
Hydrocarbon Bonding
The following 12 comments and questions have been sent in. They are listed according to date.
List of first 10 items
- Does hydrogen bond with diesel fuel?
- Suggestions for project on hydrocarbons
- Does pure carbon burn?
- By-products of burning Hydrocarbon
- Difference between alkanes and alkenes
- Using cell phones near gasoline
- Static charges and gasoline
- Doesn't understand bonding
- Wants more test questions
- Explain hydrocarbon bonding as covalent bonding
Does hydrogen bond with diesel fuel?
Question
August 26, 2009
Hello,
Thank you for sharing your wonderful website. It is very useful.
I have a question. I have a gallon of diesel and a tank of Hydrogen and a fish bubbler........
If I bubble the hydrogen through the diesel, will the hydrogen bond to the diesel? How much extra hydrogen could bond to teh diesel?
Thank you,
Nolan - USA
18217
Answer
I know that hydrogen has been injected with diesel fuel to improve the efficiency of engines. Also, hydrogen does bond well with ethanol, but I don't know what the effect is with diesel fuel or whether there is any bonding.
Sorry, but that is about the best information I can give you on this.
Suggestions for project on hydrocarbons
Question
July 19, 2007
Hi! My name is fathima and I'm from South Africa. Your information on hydrocarbons was very informative. I would like to known if you could offer any suggestions as to a project in this section of work.
Thank you.
Fathima - SA
14099
Answer
Hydrocarbon bonding is just the beginning of a very large part of chemistry called Organic Chemistry. You can study the properties of various hydrocarbons, see which ones burn the best, study their effect on air and water pollution, as well as many other ideas. Pick an area of interest and try to apply hydrocarbons to that area.
Best wishes in your project.
Does pure carbon burn?
Question
February 9, 2006
Good morning/afternoon.
I am struggling with the idea that a (one) carbon atom can burn. I can think of many practical situations that provided evidence that pure carbon does not burn. IE carbon build up on cylinder wall in an ic engine. Therefore is it fair to say that when charcoal (97% carbon), that the remaining is combustible due to hydrogen in the char and possibly other hydrogen atom is the atmosphere. Therefore, during the chemical reaction, a carbon atom dislodges from the char and bonds to a oxygen in the atmosphere because it readily can bond to make a new molecule. I may be confused but I understand that char or charcoal does have some hydrogen. Please help, can a carbon atom exist by itself?
Regards Rex Bertrand.
Rex - Australia
10006
Answer
Pure carbon does not readily combine with oxygen because the bonds that hold them is place is often stronger than the force to combine with oxygen. A single carbon atom that is unattached will easily combine with an oxygen molecule to form CO2.
A diamond is almost 100% carbon in a highly crystalline form, but if exposed to pure oxygen and high temperatures, it will burn.
The carbon buildup on a cylinder wall can burn if it is spread out and exposed to concentrated oxygen. But when it is tightly packed on the wall, the oxidation process is not effective enough to cause combustion.
By-products of burning Hydrocarbon
Question
March 13, 2005
Why are H2O and CO2 by-products of a burning Hydrocarbon?
Narssissuss - USA
6328
Answer
Hydrocarbons are made of H, C, and O and H2O and CO2 are highly stable compounds.
Difference between alkanes and alkenes
Question
March 10, 2005
Hello. I recently read your section on hydrogen bonding. Cna you please explain the difference between alkanes and alkenes? This is certain to come up in the exam I will sit in a month or so, and I was wondering how these types of hydrocarbon differed.
Kyle - United Kingdom
6290
Answer
Alkanes have carbon atoms arranged in chains and contain no double or triple bonds. Alkenes have carbon atoms arranged in chains and contain one or more double bonds.
In the absence of a spark or a high-intensity light source, alkanes are generally inert to chemical reactions.
Unsaturated hydrocarbons such as alkenes are much more reactive than the alkanes. In other words, it doesn't take much to set them off.
Using cell phones near gasoline
Question
February 10, 2005
do electromagnetic waves effect hydrocarbon near gas stations by using cell phone?
farah - India
5921
Answer
The rumors about that are false. There is no danger in using a cell phone near a gas station.
Static charges and gasoline
Question
February 10, 2005
i want to ask that how hydrocarbon catches fire by static charge?
farah - India
5920
Answer
A static electricity spark can start a fire with an inflammable material such as gasoline. It is just like lighting a match near the fumes.
Doesn't understand bonding
Question
November 9, 2004
Hello,
Apparently I'm not on my way to being "a champion" here. Is the answer that easy or am I that stupid?
First of all I'm not sure what I'm supposed to add oxygen to. Methane?
If so, what does that look like?
Also, I haven't a clue on how fire affects hydrocarbon molecules.
I also don't get how H2 is an example of two atoms sharing a single electron. If that means that two hydrogen atoms are connected by one electron, I don't get it. I'm thinking every hydrogen atom has one electron each. So if you have 2 hydrogens, aren't they sharing e'sach other electrons? Meaning they're combined by 2 electrons.
Sorry for the blockheadedness and thank you for your assistance.
- USA
4963
Answer
Don't think you are a blockhead. Those are very valid questions.
I will restate that quiz question, because it isn't very clear. If you add oxygen to any hydrocarbon such as methane and started it on fire, the resulting compounds would be water and CO2. That is because a hydrocarbon only had H and C atoms. But that is not exactly correct, because you might also get carbon monoxide gas (CO) from the reaction.
The basics of chemical reactions is that atoms try to fill their outer orbit or shell. The first shell is filled when their are two electrons. One type of chemical combinatation is when atoms share one or more electrons with another element, resulting in both having their shells filled. Once 2 hydrogen atoms get close to each other, they start sharing each others' electron, and thus form the hydrogen molecule.
Wants more test questions
Question
July 24, 2004
Do you have sites with more test questions? I liked the one that I had done but, wish there were more for a review. Thanks!
Kim - USA
3846
Answer
We're planning on adding more testing, but we'd don't have it set up yet.
Explain hydrocarbon bonding as covalent bonding
Question
February 21, 2004
thanks for the hydrocarbon Bonding. Can you explain this in terms of covalent bonding.i cannot comprehend yet the meaning of covalent bonding
-
2467
Answer
Covalent bonding is when two elements share a pair of electrons, so it appears that both have a full number in their outer shell. Two hydrogen atoms will share the two electrons, so each seems to have two. Likewise with two chlorine atoms share a pair of electrons.
Most hydrocarbon bonding is covalent bonding, since the H and C share electrons.
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