- Heat crude oil to ~350°C → all hydrocarbons vaporise
- Enter hot vapour into bottom of tall column
- Rise — vapour travels up through the column
- Cool — temperature decreases going up the column
- Condense — each fraction condenses when it reaches its boiling point
- Collect — liquid fractions drawn off at different heights
- Exit — gases that don't condense exit at the top
This deep dive covers The Fractionating Column: Step by Step within Crude Oil for GCSE Chemistry. Topic 37: Crude Oil It is section 6 of 13 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
Practice questions for Crude Oil
A hydrocarbon is a compound that contains only:
Explain how fractional distillation separates crude oil into different fractions.
Quick recall flashcards
What is a hydrocarbon?
A molecule made of hydrogen and carbon atoms ONLY
What is crude oil?
A mixture of many different hydrocarbons