Kerosene is a mixture of hydrocarbons that can be distilled from petroleum. The process of petroleum distillation has been used for centuries to produce various hydrocarbons. Kerosene was specifically named and patented in 1846 by Abraham Gesner, who discovered it was an excellent fuel for lighting lamps. When first used commercially in the late 19th century, kerosene replaced whale oil in lamps and helped save whale species from extinction. Modern kerosene production involves distilling petroleum, purifying the resulting kerosene through solvent extraction of contaminants, then storing it for use.

1. Roy Kirk
Manufacture of Kerosene
Petroleum is a complex mixture of hundreds of different hydrocarbons. Kerosene is able
to be distilled from this mixture (Figure 1). This process of petroleum distillation to attain
various hydrocarbons has existed for centuries. It was first recorded in the mid 800’s by
the Persian scholar Rhazes. The mixture of hydrocarbons that is known as kerosene was
named and patented in 1846 by Canadian geologist Abraham Gesner. It was discovered
to be an excellent fuel for lighting lamps. The manufacture of kerosene under Gesner’s
Patent began in New York during 1854. It was distilled from bituminous coal and oil
shale.
Kerosene is composed of hydrocarbons in the range of C12 to C15 which have a boiling
point range of 175ºC to 275ºC (Miller, 1976). Once the kerosene is refined from the
petroleum mixture it is modified to make it suitable for its intended purpose. When being
used as an automotive or heating fuel the kerosene is fractionated by catalytic cracking to
form straight chain molecules into branched molecules. This gives it a higher octane
number so it is more efficient when combusted. Kerosene can also be formed by cracking
longer chains so they are the length of kerosene chains.
Figure 1. Distillation of Petroleum
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2. Once kerosene has been formed it then has to be refined and purified. One method is to
use a solvent with a greater affinity for the contaminant so the contaminant will dissolve
in it rather than the kerosene. This solvent will then draw the contaminants from the
kerosene and is then removed. The different processes that use this method are the Udex,
Sulfolane, Lurgi Arosolvan, dimethyl sulfoxide, Union Carbide, Formex and Redox
(Schueller, 2010).
• Udex uses diethylene glycol and tetraethylene glycol as solvents due to high affinity
for aromatic compounds.
• The Sulfolane process uses a solvent called sulfolane that is a strong polar compound
and is more efficient than the Udex process.
• The Lurgi Arosolvan process uses N-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone mixed with water or
glycol as a solvent for contaminants.
• Dimethyl sulfoxide is used as a solvent which increases selectivity for contaminants
• Union Carbide uses tetraethylene glycol and an additional extraction step.
• The Formex process uses N-formyl morpholine and a small percentage of water as
the solvent and is flexible enough to extract aromatics from a variety of hydrocarbon
materials.
• The Redox process does not involve reduction or oxidation but rather selectively
removing aromatic hydrocarbons.
After extraction and purification kerosene is then stored in metal tanks awaiting use.
Associated environmental issues
As kerosene is a product derived from petroleum its shares in all the detrimental effects
on environment. These include highly toxic pollution of aquatic and terrestrial habitats
and contributing to climate change with the product of its combustion, CO2. However,
Kerosene also has quite a few positive effects on the environment. When kerosene first
became commercially viable as a fuel in the late 19th century it became the popular fuel
for lighting lamps. It replaced the use of whale oil for lamps. This caused the collapse of
the whale hunting industry and most likely saved many large species of whale from
extinction. Nowadays, kerosene plays an important part in impoverished countries as a
fuel. In India, the government has subsidised kerosene so that people in the poorer parts
of the countries will use it as a fuel. This stops the forest clearing performed by these
people who would have used the timber as a fuel. However, the people who use kerosene
stoves are often at risk of it malfunctioning dangerously. When confined in a kitchen this
hazard becomes life threatening.
Bibliography
Miller, G.T. (1976) Chemistry: Principles and Applications, Wadsworth Publishing,
Belmont, California.

3. Schueller R (2010) How Kerosene Is Made,
http://www.madehow.com/Volume-7/Kerosene.html#ixzz11XrXiVQ5, Date Accessed:
5/10/2010