In organic chemistry, an alkane, or paraffin, is an acyclic saturated hydrocarbon. In other words, an alkane consists of hydrogen and carbon atoms arranged in a tree structure in which all the carbon–carbon bonds are single. Alkanes have the general chemical formula CnH2n+2. The alkanes range in complexity from the simplest case of methane, where n = 1, to arbitrarily large and complex molecules, like pentacontane or 6-ethyl-2-methyl-5-(1-methylethyl) octane, an isomer of tetradecane.
In organic chemistry, the Cahn–Ingold–Prelog (CIP) sequence rules are a standard process to completely and unequivocally name a stereoisomer of a molecule. The purpose of the CIP system is to assign an R or S descriptor to each stereocenter and an E or Z descriptor to each double bond so that the configuration of the entire molecule can be specified uniquely by including the descriptors in its systematic name. A molecule may contain any number of stereocenters and any number of double bonds, and each usually gives rise to two possible isomers. A molecule with an integer n describing the number of stereocenters will usually have 2n stereoisomers, and 2n−1 diastereomers each having an associated pair of enantiomers. The CIP sequence rules contribute to the precise naming of every stereoisomer of every organic molecule with all atoms of ligancy of fewer than 4.
A coordination complex is a chemical compound consisting of a central atom or ion, which is usually metallic and is called the coordination centre, and a surrounding array of bound molecules or ions, that are in turn known as ligands or complexing agents. Many metal-containing compounds, especially those that include transition metals, are coordination complexes.
In stereochemistry, stereoisomerism, or spatial isomerism, is a form of isomerism in which molecules have the same molecular formula and sequence of bonded atoms (constitution), but differ in the three-dimensional orientations of their atoms in space. This contrasts with structural isomers, which share the same molecular formula, but the bond connections or their order differs. By definition, molecules that are stereoisomers of each other represent the same structural isomer.
Diesel fuel, also called diesel oil or historically heavy oil, is any liquid fuel specifically designed for use in a diesel engine, a type of internal combustion engine in which fuel ignition takes place without a spark as a result of compression of the inlet air and then injection of fuel. Therefore, diesel fuel needs good compression ignition characteristics.
Naphthalene is an organic compound with formula C
10H
8. It is the simplest polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, and is a white crystalline solid with a characteristic odor that is detectable at concentrations as low as 0.08 ppm by mass. As an aromatic hydrocarbon, naphthalene's structure consists of a fused pair of benzene rings. It is the main ingredient of traditional mothballs.
Biodiesel is a form of diesel fuel derived from plants or animals and consisting of long-chain fatty acid esters. It is typically made from fats.
1-Pentanol,, is the organic compound with the formula CH3CH2CH2CH2CH2OH. I is classified as a primary alcohol. 1-Pentanol is a colourless liquid with a distinctive aroma. It is one of 8 isomers with that formula.
Dimethyl ether (DME; also known as methoxymethane) is the organic compound with the formula CH3OCH3, (sometimes ambiguously simplified to C2H6O as it is an isomer of ethanol). The simplest ether, it is a colorless gas that is a useful precursor to other organic compounds and an aerosol propellant that is currently being demonstrated for use in a variety of fuel applications.
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. Most liquid fuels in widespread use are derived from fossil fuels; however, there are several types, such as hydrogen fuel, ethanol, and biodiesel, which are also categorized as a liquid fuel. Many liquid fuels play a primary role in transportation and the economy.
Shell V-Power is the brand name given to Shell's enhanced high specification fuels for road motor vehicles including Shell V-Power Nitro+ and Shell V-Power Diesel. Introduced in Italy in 2001, Shell relaunched the fuel in March 2008, under the name Nitrogen-Enriched Shell V-Power, with nitrogen-containing detergents.
Cetane number is an indicator of the combustion speed of diesel fuel and compression needed for ignition. It plays a similar role for diesel as octane rating does for gasoline. The CN is an important factor in determining the quality of diesel fuel, but not the only one; other measurements of diesel fuel's quality include energy content, density, lubricity, cold-flow properties and sulphur content.
Hexadecane (also called cetane) is an alkane hydrocarbon with the chemical formula C16H34. Hexadecane consists of a chain of 16 carbon atoms, with three hydrogen atoms bonded to the two end carbon atoms, and two hydrogens bonded to each of the 14 other carbon atoms.
A chemical substance is a unique form of matter with constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Chemical substances may take the form of a single element or chemical compounds. If two or more chemical substances can be combined without reacting, they may form a chemical mixture. If a mixture is separated to isolate one chemical substance to a desired degree, the resulting substance is said to be chemically pure.
Cetane index is used as a substitute for the cetane number of diesel fuel. The cetane index is calculated based on the fuel's density and distillation range. There are two methods used, ASTM D976 and D4737. The older D976, or "two-variable equation" is outdated and should no longer be used for cetane number estimation. It is, however, still required by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as an alternative method for satisfying its aromaticity requirement for diesel fuel. D4737 is the newest method and is sometimes referred to as "the four-variable equation". D4737 is the same method as ISO 4264. Cetane index in some crude oil assays is often referred to as Cetane calcule, while the cetane number is referred to as Cetane measure.
1-Methylnaphthalene is an organic compound with the formula CH3C10H7. It is a colorless liquid. It is isomeric with 2-methylnaphthalene.
LS-9 Inc was a venture-funded company focused on producing diesel fuel from transgenic organisms. It launched in 2005, took in $81 million in investment, and in 2013 was sold to Renewable Energy Group for $40 million in cash and stock, and an additional $21.5 million if technology and production milestones were met.
2-Methylpentane, trivially known as isohexane, is a branched-chain alkane with the molecular formula C6H14. It is a structural isomer of hexane composed of a methyl group bonded to the second carbon atom in a pentane chain. Using a quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) prediction model, 2-Methylpentane has a research octane number (RON) of 75, motor octane number (MON) of 77, and cetane number (CN) of 29.
Perfluoromethyldecalin is a fluorocarbon liquid—a perfluorinated derivative of the hydrocarbon methyldecalin. It is chemically and biologically inert. It is mainly of interest as a blood substitute, exploiting the high solubility of air in this solvent.
A cetane improver [′sē‚tān im′prüv·ər] is a chemical which has the effect of increasing a diesel fuel's cetane number. A few examples are nitrates, nitroalkanes, nitrocarbonates and peroxides.
