Gasoline Chemical Formula

Gasoline is a chemical compound used as a fuel for vehicles and machines. It is one of the most consume products worldwide. It is a derivative product of crude-oil or petroleum.

Formula and structure: Gasoline is mixture of different alkanes, alkenes and cycloalkanes compounds. Most of these compounds have between 4-12 carbon atoms per molecules. The main components are isooctane, butane, 3-ethyltoluene and methyl tert-butyl ether. To these compounds, it is commonly added some kind of additive.

Occurrence: Gasoline is not found in nature as a free compound, instead it is extrated from crude oil through the next methods.

Preparation: Gasoline is prepared from fractional distillation of crude-oil in oil refineries. The distilled product, a colorless liquid, is then mixture with some additives as ethanol.

Physical properties: The physical properties of the gasolines are estimating according to its density, which is around 0.708 kg/L. Density can vary a lot according to the components of the mixture, for example, gasoline with higher concentration of aromatic, is denser. The stability of the gasoline is another point that allows its characterization, for example, after a long storage time gasoline can separate in the different compounds that form the mixture.

Chemical properties: Gasoline have different content in according to the content, it can be used for different purposes:

Uses: It is used as a fuel for vehicles and machine. It is also used as a raw material by some chemical and petrochemical industries.

Health effects / safety hazards: Benzene, one of the aromatic components of gasoline is a carcinogenic agent, thus, a higher content of this compound is harmful. Gasoline is considered a contaminant for environment, its use on vehicles emitted high quantities of carbon dioxide. Other components of gasoline are also toxic, so the mixture by itself is considered toxic.