Investigating Fuels Lab Report

Design

Aim

To investigate the relationship between different types of fuels and their energy content

Research Question

How does the fuel’s energy content affect its efficiency?

Hypothesis

The more the energy content of the fuel, the more energy output will be generated.

This is because with more energy content, more energy will be released as greater energy content defers to a greater number of intermolecular bonds, which requires more energy to be overcome, hence, in an equation of combustion, taking in more oxygen while generating more by-products.

Variables

Constant	Volume of water heated	The water inside the tin container is cleared and 50ml of water measured in a beaker is poured into the tin container after the fuel is tested.
Manipulated	Type of fuels used	The fuels are identified and differed by their physical and chemical properties and clear labels.
Responding	Max. temperature change of water	The temperature of the water before heating is first recorded and the highest temperature obtained will be recorded. Change is then calculated by subtraction.

Apparatus

1.      3 wooden blocks

2.      3 wooden sticks

3.      2 wooden planks

4.      1 wire gauze

5.      1 tripod stand

6.      1 metal can

7.      1 50ml beaker

8.      1 thermometer

9.      3 5cm strings

10.  150ml of H₂O

11.  1 starter

12.  1 Bunsen burner

13.  5g of Kerosene

14.  5g of Petrol

15.  5g of Diesel

16.  Electronic balance

17.  Crucible

Procedure

1.      Prepare the apparatus stated in the diagram:

2.      Insert string into crucible with end sticking out

3.      Insert 5g of kerosene into the crucible

4.      Insert 50ml of water into tin can

5.      Measure initial temperature of water

6.      Lit wooden stick with Bunsen burner

7.      Lit string with wooden stick

8.      Observe and take note of highest temperature of water

9.      Repeat steps 1-8 with petrol and diesel

Safety Procedures

1.      Be very control with fire- Chemicals used in this experiment are highly flammable

2.      Proper attire- Hair should be kept neat and tied to ensure it does not get on fire

Data

Raw Data

Fuel Mass	Types of Fuel	Initial temperature (°C)	Final temperature (°C)	Temperature increased (°C)	Mass of fuel after burning	Volume of water	Flame behavior
5g	Kerosene	27	80	53	0g	50ml	Burn brightly, orange yellow
5g	Petrol	28	60	32	0g	50ml	Burn brightly, orange yellow wide spread
5g	Diesel	27	75	48	0g	50ml	Small flame, burns weakly

Observations

From the table, as you can observe, different types of fuel have different energy content, which therefore makes all the temperature in the table different. Kerosene had made the most temperature change in water, following with diesel and petrol in the last. 

Data Analysis

Results

  Judging on the temperature changes, the thermal capacity of the fuel can be calculated by the equation of

Q=MC∆t

 This is where Thermal energy = Mass x Specific heat capacity x Change in temperature.

Fuels	Calculations
Kerosene	Q=MC∆t Q= 50g*4.2J/(kg˚C)*(-53˚C) = -11130J
Petrol	Q=MC∆t Q= 50g*4.2J/(kg˚C)*(-48˚C) =-10080J
Diesel	Q= MC∆t Q= 50g*4.2J/(kg˚C)*(-48˚C) = -10080J

  From the table, the fuels can be proved as exothermic reactions as they all produced negative answers where this can also explain why the heat is given out of during the reaction.

  Kerosene has the lowest negative number, giving it the highest heat capacity, followed by petrol as the second highest and diesel. The lower the number where the more heat is released the higher the exothermic level of the product.

 

Heat capacity is affected by the intermolecular force of the bond of the substance, where a specific amount of heat is needed to overcome or form bonds. The strength of these bonds can be also affected by some other factors such as the number of electrons in an atom, the distance between the nucleus, and basic periodic table properties where it will affect how strong the bond is.

Experiment

·         Metal Container- A metal container is used in this experiment to ensure a more accurate test by allowing heat to be distributed evenly throughout the water

·         Wooden Blocks-  The wooden blocks are used for additional elevation of the crucible to ensure the fire touches the metal container, reducing heat loss to the environment

·         Wooden Planks- The wooden planks are used to block off incoming winds which might put out the fire, hence, failing the experiment

Evaluation

Error Analysis

·         Diesel Experiment- The diesel experiment on the first attempt failed as the fire went out before the fuel can be burnt completely. A second attempt was made and was a success.

·         Length of string- The length of the string is not prepared in constant where it might affect the combustion reaction

·         Time- Everything was done in a rush where the time given was limited

Suggestion for Improvements

·        Ensuring the environment is suitable for the experiment, where if there will be use of fire in the experiment, ventilation should be added while no winds are allowed to enter

·         Repeating experiments for better accuracy

Conclusion

The hypothesis is proven where different types of fuels has different heat capacity, and answering the research question, the more the energy content of the fuel, the more efficiency due to the more energy generated, where efficiency can be calculated with work done / time.