Acid rain
Acid rain is caused by emissions of compounds of nitrogen, and sulphur, which react with the water molecules in the atmosphere to produce acids.......
Read moreAdditive
An ingredient added to the fuel in small amounts during processing, blending or distribution, which enhances a specific aspect of its performance. In order to arrive at a set of properties appropria......
Read moreAlcohol
Alcohols are amongst the most common organic compounds. Chemically an alcohol is any organic compound in which the hydroxyl functional group (–OH) is bound to a carbon. The term alcohol originally......
Read moreAlipathic compound / hydrocarbon
Any organic compound in which the main structure is a chain of carbon atoms joined to each other. Chemically, hydrocarbons are divided into two classes: aromatic and aliphatic. Aliphatics can......
Read moreAlkylates
A high-octane blending component of petrol formed by the combination of two smaller molecules. Most commonly isobutane and butylenes to make iso-octane.......
Read moreAlkylation unit
Chemically alkylation refers to a wider class of reaction then the specific ones described. Olefins, such as propylene and butylenes are produced by catalytic and thermal cracking. An alkylati......
Read moreAromatics
Aromatics, historically so called because of their distinctive perfumed smell of the main aromatic molecules, are a group of hydrocarbons including, mainly, benzene, toluene and the xylenes. T......
Read moreAtom
The smallest unit into which matter can be divided without the release of electrically charged particles, and also the smallest unit of matter that cannot be decomposed into simpler substances by ordi......
Read moreBenzene
Benzene is the simplest aromatic compound, with a ring of six carbon atoms and six hydrogen atoms. It is a colourless liquid occurring naturally in fossil raw materials such as crude oil and c......
Read moreBiofuels
Biofuels are gas or liquid fuel (alcohols, ethers, esters, and other chemicals) made from plant material, agricultural and forestry residues, and a large portion of municipal solid and industrial wa......
Read moreBOB
Blendstocks for Oxygenate Blending is the specially prepared hydrocarbon base blends to which ethanol and other components /additives can be directly blended to yield an on-spec finished petrol.......
Read moreButadiene
A flammable gaseous olefin used in making synthetic rubbers. Butadiene rubber has now completely displaced natural rubber in the manufacture of automobile tyres.......
Read moreButane
Butanes are colourless, odourless, gaseous hydrocarbons. The compound in which the carbon atoms are linked in a straight chain is called normal butane, or n-butane; the branched-chain form is isobu......
Read moreButylene
Also called butene, any of four isomeric compounds belonging to the series of olefinic hydrocarbons. They are formed during the cracking of petroleum to produce petrol; they can also be prepare......
Read moreCarbon
An element forming a large number of compounds, many of which have important uses. Diamond and graphite are amongst the main forms of carbon. Coals are elemental carbon mixed with varying amounts o......
Read moreCatalyst
A substance, which aids or promotes a chemical reaction without forming part of the final product. It enables the reaction to take place faster, remains unchanged at the end of the reaction and can pr......
Read moreChemical reaction
A chemical process in which substances are changed into different substances. Chemical reactions are manifested by the disappearance of properties characteristic of the starting materials and the ap......
Read moreChlorine
Chlorine, an inorganic chemical that can be obtained both naturally and synthetically, has a huge variety of uses, as a disinfectant and purifier, in plastics and polymers, solvents, agrochemicals a......
Read moreClean fuel
So-called clean fuels are among the instruments introduced by EU Member States to combat air pollution problems arising from increases in road transport. Clean, efficient and cost-effective liquid fue......
Read moreCO
Carbon monoxide. A colourless, highly poisonous gas. When the oxygen supply in insufficient, carbon monoxide is formed in combustion of fossil fuel and carbon-containing materials.......
Read moreCoal
A black or brownish black solid, combustible carbon-rich substance formed by the partial decomposition of vegetable matter without access to air. Coal is one of the most important of the primary foss......
Read moreCompound
A compound is formed when atoms of at least two different elements combine.......
Read moreCracking
The process of breaking down large molecules of oil into smaller ones. When this process is achieved by the application of heat only, it is known as thermal cracking. If a catalyst is used as well......
Read moreCrude Oil
A mixture of liquid hydrocarbons that occurs in the Earth's crust. Crude oil is extracted and refined to be used as fuel and in various other petroleum products. Typically, crude oil contains, in va......
Read moreDehydrogenation
An organic chemical reaction in which a pair of hydrogen atoms are removed from a molecule.......
Read moreDistillation
The process of boiling a liquid and condensing and collecting the vapour. This process is used to purify liquids and to separate liquid mixtures. In the oil industry, distillation is used to separate......
Read moreEsters
Any of a class of organic compounds made from the chemical reaction between an alcohol and an organic acid. The transesterification of vegetable oils, animal fats or waste cooking oils is the pro......
Read moreEthane
A gaseous hydrocarbon, the second most important constituent of natural gas, it also occurs dissolved in petroleum oils and as a by-product of oil refinery operations and of the carbonisation of ......
Read moreEthanol
Ethanol, also known as ethyl alcohol is typically manufactured by synthesis from ethylene or produced from bio-based feedstock like sugar cane, corn, sugar beet, wheat and other crops with high sugar......
Read moreEthers
Ether are oxygenated derivatives. An ether has two hydrocarbon groups bonded to the oxygen atom. Diethyl ether (also called simply ether) is the most common variety. It is widely used as a solvent and......
Read moreEthylene
Ethylene (also called ethene) is the simplest member of the olefinic hydrocarbons series and one of the most important raw materials of the organic chemical industry. It occurs in both petroleum and......
Read moreFCC
Fluid Catalytic Cracking - A petroleum refining process, succeeding catalytic cracking, which provides a highly efficient means of converting heavy gas oils into naphtha.......
Read moreFeedstock
Raw material used in a processing plant. The most important feedstock for the European petrochemical industry is naphtha.......
Read moreFossil fuel
A general term for buried combustible geologic deposits of organic materials occurring within the Earth's crust, that can be used as a source of energy. They all contain carbon and were formed as......
Read moreFraction
In the oil industry, fraction refers to one of the portions of fractional distillation having a restricted boiling range.......
Read moreFuel ethers
Fuel ethers are clear, colourless to pale yellow liquid organic compounds with a distinctive turpentine-like odour, and used as blending components in fuels. They contain oxygen in a chain of carbon a......
Read moreGasoline
Gasoline is widely used as a fuel for cars. Gasoline (also called Petrol in Europe) is a complex mixture of a number of hydrocarbon fractions produced from the refining of crude oil , which has to......
Read moreHydrocarbon
An organic compound that consists exclusively of the elements carbon and hydrogen. Generally, the term hydrocarbon is used for the chemicals that are derived from natural gas, oil and coal.......
Read moreIsomer
Two or more substances that have identical molecular formulas but different molecular structures or configurations, and hence different properties, are called isomers. Isomers differ only in the a......
Read moreLPG
Liquefied Petroleum Gas is a flammable mixture of hydrocarbon gases used as a fuel in heating appliances and vehicles. Varieties of LPG include mixes of propane, butane or both propane and but......
Read moreMethane
Methane is a colourless, odourless, flammable gas that occurs abundantly in nature as the chief constituent of natural gas as a component of firedamp in coal mines, and as a product of the decomposi......
Read moreMethanol
Methanol (MeOH), a colourless alcohol, is a chemical used as a starting point for the production of a wide range of chemicals, and is used as a solvent in many applications. It is also used to pr......
Read moreMolecule
Chemical combination of two or more atoms of the same chemical element (such as O2 - which is oxygen) or different chemical elements (such as H2O - which is water).......
Read moreMON
MON = Motor Octane Number. The Motor Octane Number (MON) is a tougher test than RON and simulates higher engine speed and temperature. Petrol is a complex mixture of hundreds different chemical......
Read moreMonomer
Monomer is a molecule that is used in a repeated sequence to form a polymer that contains multiple (>3) units of this monomer.......
Read moreMSDS
A MSDS is a form with data regarding the properties of a particular substance. It includes information such as physical data (melting point, boiling point, flash point, etc.), toxicity, health effect......
Read moreNaphtha
Naphtha is a petroleum distillate containing principally aliphatic hydrocarbons. It is the primary source from which petrol is derived.......
Read moreNatural Gas
Colourless, highly flammable gaseous hydrocarbon consisting primarily of methane, ethane, and small amounts of heavier gaseous hydrocarbon compounds such as propane. Ethane and propane, also call......
Read moreNitrogen oxides (NOx)
Nitrogen oxides are formed during high temperature combustion processes from the oxidation of nitrogen in the air or fuel. The principal source is road traffic. Other important sources are power stati......
Read moreNMVOC
NMVOC: Non-Methane Volatile Organic Compounds. It is a generic term for a large variety of chemically different compounds, like for example, benzene, ethanol, formaldehyde, cyclohexane, 1,1,1-t......
Read moreOctane
For a petrol engine to work efficiently, petrol must burn smoothly without premature detonation, or knocking. Severe knocking can dissipate power output and even cause damage to the engine. ......
Read moreOEM
Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEMs) in relation to car industry refers to motor vehicle producers.......
Read moreOlefins
Olefins are unsaturated materials found in various petrol blending components. Their tendency to react further is usually controlled by the addition of additives.......
Read moreOrganic
Organic chemicals are generally based on carbon compounds and form the backbone of the petrochemicals industry Wirth noting that a few types of carbon-containing compounds, such as carbides, carb......
Read moreOxygenates
Oxygenates are compounds containing oxygen in a chain of carbon and hydrogen atoms. Today, oxygenates are blended into petrol in two forms: alcohols or ethers. In alcohols, each oxygen ato......
Read moreOzone
Ozone (O3) is a key component of photochemical smog. Ozone is formed by a complex reaction between nitrogen dioxide and hydrocarbons in the presence of sunlight. It is considered to be a criteria......
Read morePetrochemical
An organic compound that has been derived from petroleum or natural gas. There are almost 200 chemicals that can be so described and they include many simple hydrocarbons (e.g. methane, ethane......
Read morePetroleum
A generic term applied to oil and oil products in all forms, such as crude oil, unfinished oils, petroleum products, natural gas plant liquids, and non-hydrocarbon compounds blended into finished pe......
Read morePM
Particulate Matter. Particulates, alternatively known to as particulate matter (PM) or fine particles and also called soot, are tiny subdivisions of solid or liquid matter suspended in a gas or liqu......
Read morePolyethylene
A polymer of ethylene especially any of various lightweight thermoplastics that are resistant to chemicals and moisture, have good insulating properties, and are used especially in packaging and ins......
Read morePolymers
When certain individual molecules (monomers) come together and link up in a chain-like fashion they form a polymer. The chemical reaction that forms a polymer is called polymerisation. There are nat......
Read morePolyurethane
A synthetic compound belonging to the family of organic polymers. Polyurethanes are used to make the foam in furniture, mattresses, car seats, building insulation, coatings for floors and furnitu......
Read morePropane
A colourless, gaseous hydrocarbon. It is separated in large quantities from natural gas, light crude oil, and oil-refinery gases and is commercially available as liquefied propane or as a major cons......
Read morePropylene
Also called propene, a colourless, flammable, gaseous hydrocarbon obtained from petroleum; large quantities of propylene are used in the manufacture of resins, fibres, and plastics (see polyolefins......
Read moreRefining
Conversion of crude oil into useful products, such as naphtha, the most important feedstock for the petrochemical industry. Every refinery begins with the separation of crude oil into different f......
Read moreReforming
The thermal or catalytic conversion of petroleum naphtha into more volatile products of higher octane number. It represents the total effect of numerous simultaneous reactions such as cracking......
Read moreResins
The term resin originally refers to Latin and Greek names of the “resin of the pine”. Starting from the early years of the plastics industry the name has been applied to wide range of liquid or hi......
Read moreRisk Assessment
The drafting of Risks Assessment reports preceded the current REACH Risk Assessments. Substances on European priority lists have to undergo an in-depth risk assessment covering the risks posed by......
Read moreRON
RON = Research Octane Number. The Research Octane Number (RON) simulates fuel performance under low speed and low severity engine operation. Petrol is a complex mixture of hundreds different chem......
Read moreRubber
Synthetic rubber, as opposed to natural rubber (obtained from the exudations of certain tropical trees), is derived from petroleum and natural gas. Because of its elasticity, resilience, and tough......
Read moreRVP
Reid Vapour Pressure. As petrol evaporates, VOCs enter the atmosphere and contribute to ozone formation. Petrol’s propensity to evaporate is measured by Reid vapour pressure (RVP). It is de......
Read moreSolvent
A solvent is a liquid that has the ability to dissolve, suspend or extract other materials, without chemical change to the material or solvent. Solvents make it possible to process, apply, clean or se......
Read moreSteam cracking
Steam cracking is a further application of thermal cracking. It is a petrochemical process used to produce olefinic raw materials (e.g. propylene, ethylene) from various feedstocks for petrochemica......
Read moreSubstance
The word "substance" is used to mean chemical elements and their compounds in the natural state or obtained by any production process, including any additive necessary to preserve the stability of t......
Read moreSulphur
Sulphur is a chemical element with the atomic number 16. It is found in varying amounts in crude oil where it is part of a wide range of molecules. When the sulphur containing molecules in petrol a......
Read moreSynthetic/Synthesis
The production of a substance by the union of chemical elements, groups or simpler compounds, or by the degradation of a complex compound.......
Read moreThermal cracking
Thermal cracking is a petroleum refining process used to break up heavy oil molecules into lighter, more valuable fractions (e.g. petrol, kerosene) by the use of high temperature without the aid......
Read moreToluene
Toluene, a colourless liquid, is an aromatic hydrocarbon used extensively as starting material for the manufacture of industrial chemicals.......
Read moreVOC
VOC = Volatile Organic Compound. The term "Volatile Organic Compounds" refers to organic compounds that readily evaporate. VOCs include pure hydrocarbons, partially oxidised hydrocarbons, and......
Read moreXylene
Xylene, a colourless liquid, is an aromatic hydrocarbon of which there are several forms. Xylenes are used as solvents, as components of aviation fuel, and as raw materials for the manufacture of......
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