ENERGY ENGINEERING

DR. ASIM UMER

SAHREEN SHAMSHAD | 2012-CH-401

Lab Assignment # 01

Aniline Point
The aniline point is a physical characteristic of hydrocarbon compounds, such as
oils, and refers to the minimum temperature at which the hydrocarbon and the
same amount of the compound aniline (C5H5NH2) are perfectly miscible.
At temperatures below this point, a mixture of the compound and an equal
volume of aniline will not dissolve together. The result of a test, called the aniline
test, gives chemists this information about a hydrocarbon, including certain
details about its composition, such as the relative content of aromatic chemicals
and various paraffin.
The test for finding the aniline point of a given oil or other hydrocarbon, such as
a petroleum distillate, is relatively simple. A volume of the test liquid and an
equal volume of aniline are placed together in a container, such as a test tube or
other laboratory vessel, and slowly heated while being gently agitated. When
two liquids completely dissolve into one another, the mixture turns from cloudy
to clear. The sample is removed from the heat and stirred until it becomes cloudy
again. The temperature at that point is the aniline point of that compound.
The
aniline
point
of
a
liquid
will
vary,
depending
upon
the
relative concentration of aromatic compounds dissolved in it. Generally, a higher
aniline point means a relatively low level of dissolved aromatics. By using
reference materials for a pure sample of a given substance and comparing the
aniline point of the pure sample to that of the test sample, a chemist can
calculate the amount of aromatics in the test sample with a high degree of
accuracy. Similar techniques and calculations can be used to determine the level
of paraffin compounds that are present.

__________________________________________________
Aniline point apparatus RM 445

Flash Point
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The flash point of a particular chemical refers to the lowest temperature at which
that chemical, in liquid form, will produce combustible vapors that will ignite with
the introduction of an ignition source. This temperature can vary, for a given
chemical, based on factors including pressure, the quantity of the chemical, and
the location of the ignition source in relation to the chemical. The flash point for
a particular chemical is, therefore, somewhat unreliable and should be used as a
general guideline, rather than an absolute value.
There are two basic ways in which the flash point for a particular chemical can be
determined: open cup or closed cup experiments. Both types of experiments are
based on the fact that a liquid that is combustible, such as gasoline, releases
vapors that are potentially ignitable. As the temperature of the liquid increases,
the amount of these vapors also increases. This means that at a certain
temperature, the vapor concentration is high enough that it becomes ignitable.
Chemicals with a fairly low flash point are referred to as flammable, while
chemicals with higher flash points are usually referred to as combustible.
Measurement apparatus are:
Open cup
Close cup

Open cup:
An open cup experiment involves a quantity of a particular chemical placed in a
container that is open. The chemical is slowly heated and an ignition source,
such as a small flame, is introduced above the chemical at various intervals. This
process continues until a temperature is reached at which the vapors from the
chemicals ignite, which establishes the flash point for that chemical. Once
ignition occurs, the ignition source is removed and the vapors should then stop
burning; if they continue to burn without the source, however, then the fire
point for a chemical has been reached

Closed cup:
In a closed cup experiment, the process is similar but the container for the
chemical is lidded and the ignition source is introduced through the lid. A closed
cup experiment allows for the flash point of a particular chemical to be
determined when that chemical is under increased pressure due to a closed

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system. This is important for determining safe handling conditions for various
chemicals stored or transported in closed containers.

Fire Point:
The fire point is the temperature at which a liquid will produce enough flammable
vapor to create sustained combustion, burning for at least five seconds, if the
vapor is exposed to flame or a spark. It is an important parameter for safety
testing, as the combustion of a fluid can create a fire risk if the flames jump to
objects in the surrounding area or ignite other fluids. Safety testing for liquids
known to be potentially flammable can include a test to determine the fire point.
A number of related terms refer to the flammability of fluid components, and it is
important to be aware of the differences between them. As temperatures rise,
fluids produce flammable vapors through the process of evaporation. At the flash
point, exposure to a point of ignition like an open flame will produce a brief flash
of flame but the temperature is not hot enough to perpetuate the evaporation
and maintain the flames. The fire point, slightly higher, provides sustained
ignition. At the auto-ignition point, temperatures rise enough for the vapor to
catch fire spontaneously, a considerable safety risk.
Information about the fire point is not always available. As a general rule of
thumb, it falls around 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius) above the
flash point. If there are specific concerns about sustained combustion in high
temperatures, a separate test should be performed to confirm the fire point and
determine whether a flammable fluid is suitable for use. This can be done by a
materials testing company, where a controlled environment for testing is
available to obtain reliable and highly accurate results.

Smoke Point:

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Smoke point is a term which refers to the point at which cooking oil begins to
break down and give off fumes, or smoke. At this temperature, the oil begins
decomposition, gives off noxious odor, and looks burnt. If the oil continues to rise
in temperature, it can reach the flash point, when it will catch on fire.
Cooking oils come from a wide variety of sources, with unique flavors, nutritional
benefits and heating properties such as smoke points. Many other factors can
also lower the flash point of oil, such as the presence of foreign organic material,
the use of salt, the number of times the oil has been reused, and whether or not
the product is a mixture of different oils. Saturated fats those which are solid
at room temperature including lard, butter, and bacon grease, begin
to smoke at relatively low temperatures. These products are considered to be
less healthy, and should only be used to saut or bake at relatively low
temperatures.
Another factor which affects the smoke point of oil is the amount of refinement
and processing it undergoes. Unrefined oil is generally cold-pressed and not
subjected to heat or chemicals. As a result, it often contains organic material
from the source, which lowers the temperature at which the product can be used
effectively in cooking. One example of this is unrefined canola oil, which has
a smoke point of under 225 degrees Fahrenheit (107.2 Celsius), while refined
canola oil is an excellent cooking oil with a smoke point of close to 400 degrees F
(204.4 C)

Cloud Point:
In crude or heavy oils, cloud point is synonymous with wax appearance
temperature (WAT) and wax precipitation temperature (WPT).
A specific temperature where that fuel or oil begins to get cloudy from the
appearance of wax crystals. It is important during the process that the refiner
knows what this temperature is for each product. These wax particles can cause
damage if left in fuel destined for combustion engines, such as gasoline.
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Petroleum is predominantly comprised of various hydrocarbons in gas, liquid, or

solid states. Crude oil and natural gas are members of this group. One
hydrocarbon in crude oil is paraffin, which is commonly known in food
preservation. During the refining process, various temperatures yield different
products, and the temperature at which the wax begins to emerge in the fuel or
oil is known as the cloud point.
Wax, which appears at the cloud point, can be harmful and destructive if not
discovered in refined fuels. Filters and fuel injector systems in fuel-powered
engines can be clogged from wax build up. Even in the refinery itself, it can be a
nuisance by accumulating and blocking pipelines and other pieces of equipment
that operating at cloud point temperatures.
The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) provides an outline of the
goal of tests to determine cloud point. Standardized testing allows uniformity
compliance for those offering testing methods, as well as the refineries that
employ them. Generally, cloud points for all fuel and oil levels are analyzed in
transparent layers that are 40 mm thick.

Methods for finding the cloud point vary. Constant cooling rate is one standard
method used to determine the cloud point in both pure and blended fuels and
oils. This method cools the fluid at a steady rate, such as two degrees per
minute, making it easier to determine the precise temperature at which the wax
crystals form, thus giving a precise cloud point.

Pour Point:
Pour point is the temperature above which a lubricant or fluid will move freely
under normal conditions. This can be an important characteristic to determine in
materials testing. For some kinds of materials, standardized tests are available to
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allow manufacturers to consistently determine and report their pour points, and
the material may need to adhere to set specifications before it can be sold. Some
products come in a range of formulations, in which case the labeling can provide
information about performance in various conditions, including the pour point.

Oil and gas companies pay close attention to pour point because it has an impact
on drilling and transport. If a petroleum deposit has a high pour point, usually
reflecting a high paraffin content, it may be difficult to extract. Drilling teams
need the oil to flow so they can pull it up with drilling rigs. Transport can also
become a problem; in some cases, oil pipelines need to be heated to keep the oil
at pour point and ensure it moves smoothly from oil fields to shipping terminals
and other destinations.
Manufacturers of lubricants also have concerns in this area. For products like
motor oil, the lubricant may need to operate at a range of temperatures.
Technicians dont want oil that flows too readily at low temperatures because it
might think too much at high temperatures and cause problems with the engine.
They also need to consider issues like handling engines in extreme cold, where it
is sometimes necessary to heat lubricants or entire engine blocks to keep the
equipment operational.
To test the pour point of a material, one simple option is to fill a sample container
and place it in a cool environment. As the temperature is lowered, a technician
can periodically tilt the container to see if the material moves. When tipping the
container on its side results in no movement for five minutes, it is apparent that
the material has dropped just below the pour point. The testing team can add
several degrees to this temperature to determine the operating temperature
disclosures for labeling and regulatory purposes;
one
standard has testers add three degrees Celsius to
obtain this measurement.

Freezing Point:

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The temperature at any fixed pressure at which the liquid and solid phases of a s
ubstanceof specified composition are in equilibrium.
The freezing point or melting point of water is the temperature at which water
changes phase from a liquid to a solid or vice versa. The freezing point describes
the liquid to solid transition while the melting point is the temperature at which
water goes from a solid (ice) to liquid water. In theory, the two temperatures
would be the same, but liquids can be super cooled beyond their freezing points
so that they don't solidify until well below freezing point. Ordinarily the freezing
point of water is 0 C or 32 F. The temperature may be lower if super cooling
occurs or if there are impurities present in the water which could cause freezing
point depression to occur.

A freezing point depression is when the normal freezing point of a liquid is

lowered beyond normal by the addition of a solute. Every liquid has a
normal freezing point; for example, pure water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit
(F) (zero degrees Celsius, or C). The salt in sea water brings sea water to a
lower freezing point than that of pure water; sea water can still freeze, however,
the temperatures at which it does so are lower than waters from a pure water
source. This fact is what enables the making of ice cream in ice cream freezers,
when the metal canister in the middle is surrounded by rock salted ice. The
melting of the ice by the rock salt allows the ice cream mix to lose heat into the
surrounding ice water, and thereby freezes the ice cream.

Viscosity:

Viscosity is a scientific term that describes the resistance to flow of a fluid. The
fluid can be a liquid or a gas, but the term is more commonly associated with
liquids.
As a simple example,
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Syrup has a much higher viscosity than water; more force is required to move a
spoon through a jar of syrup than in a jar of water because the syrup is more
resistant to flowing around the spoon. This resistance is due to the friction
produced by the fluids molecules and affects both the extent to which a fluid will
oppose the movement of an object through it and the pressure required to make
a fluid move through a tube or pipe.
Viscosity is affected by a number of factors, including the size and shape of the
molecules, the interactions between them, and temperature.

The viscosity of a liquid can be measured in a number of ways by devices called

viscometers. These can either measure the time it takes for a fluid to move a
particular distance through a tube or the time taken for an object with a given

size and density to fall through the liquid of interest. The SI unit of measure for
this is the Pascal-second, with the Pascal being the unit of pressure. This quality
is therefore measured in terms of pressure and time, so that, under a given
pressure, a viscous liquid will take more time to move a given distance than a
less viscous one.

Vapor Pressure:
By definition, vapor pressure is the amount of pressure within a vapor or gas
when the substance is in an equilibrium state. In other words, when a liquid or
solid is in a closed container and some molecules evaporate while others return
to the liquid or solid state, the pressure that can be measured within that
container relates to the vapor. Vapor pressure is expressed in terms of
atmospheres (atm) and may be affected by temperature changes, container size
and molecular bond strength. When water transforms into steam and the steam
is trapped in a container, the water vapor pressure will increase until it reaches a
point of equilibrium. At that point, the rate of evaporation is equal to the rate of
condensation. In other words, when steam is captured in a closed area, the rise
in temperature resulting from an increase in steam leads to condensation inside
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the container. The water molecules are trapped within the container walls and
cannot escape. As a result, the molecules begin to collide and bond and return to
a liquid state.
As temperature increases, the rate of evaporation also increases. Molecules will
continue to evaporate until the point of equilibrium is reached. The point of
equilibrium also is known as the saturation vapor pressure, because the vapor is
completely saturated. The process of condensation commences once the point of
equilibrium has been reached.

American Petroleum Institute (API):

The American Petroleum Institute (API) is the largest U.S trade association for the
oil and natural gas industry. It claims to represent about 400 corporations
involved in production, refinement, distribution, and many other aspects of
the petroleum industry.
API also defines and drafts standards for measurement for manufactured
products such as

Precision thread gauges

Plain plug and ring gauges

Thread measuring systems

Metrology and industrial supplies

Measuring instruments

Custom gauges

Precision machining and grinding

ISO 17025 registered calibration

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Acid Number:
The acid number is a chemical measurement used to represent the acidity of an
oil, such as petroleum or cooking oil. It is calculated from the mass of base,
measured in milligrams of potassium hydroxide, needed to neutralize the acids in
one gram of the oil. Acid number, also called acid value, is often an important
guideline in determining the degradation of oil products.
The test for acid number uses the principles of acid-base chemistry to determine
the acidity of the oil being tested. Acids and bases are opposing substances that
can cancel each other out when mixed. When a base, such as the potassium
hydroxide, is added to an acidic substance, a neutralization reaction occurs.
By measuring how much potassium hydroxide is required to complete the
neutralization reaction, it is possible to deduce the amount of acid in the test
sample.
Acids and bases are chemical compounds that dissociate in water into
their constituent ions atoms with a positive or negative overall charge. Bases
give off hydroxide ions, while acids give off hydrogen ions. For example, the base
potassium hydroxide, represented by the chemical formula KOH, dissociates in
water into positively-charged potassium ions (K +) and negatively charged
hydroxide ions (OH-). Hydrochloric acid (HCl), on the other hand, dissociates into
positively charged hydrogen ions (H+) and negatively charged chlorine (Cl -) ions.
TAN value can be deduced by various methods, including:

Potentiometric

Titration:

in toluene and propanol with

The
little

sample
water

is

and

normally

titrated

dissolved

with

alcoholic

potassium hydroxide (if sample is acidic). A glass electrode and reference

electrode

is

immersed

in

the

sample

and

connected

to

voltmeter/potentiometer. The meter reading (in millivolts) is plotted against

the volume of titrant. The end point is taken at the distinct inflection of the
resulting titration curve corresponding to the basic buffer solution.

Color

Indicating

Titration:

An

appropriate pH color

indicator

e.g. phenolphthalein, is used. Titrant is added to the sample by means of a

burette. The volume of titrant used to cause a permanent color change in the
sample is recorded and used to calculate the TAN value.

Spectroscopic

methods:

As

with

many

chemical

parameters,

spectroscopy can be used to make fast, accurate measurements once

calibrated by a reference method. Mid and near infrared spectroscopy are
most commonly used for this purpose. Spectroscopic methods are valuable as

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they can also be used to simultaneously measure a number of other

parameters and do away with the need for wet chemistry.

Octane Number:

An octane number is a number which reflects a fuel's resistance to knocking.

Knocking occurs when fuel combusts prematurely or explodes in an engine,
causing a distinctive noise which resembles knocking, rattling, or pinging. Engine
knock can cause damage to the engine, and it indicates that the engine is not
running as efficiently as it could be. Many engines come with specific octane
rating recommendations.
Octane numbers are obtained by testing a fuel in controlled circumstances. Two
different
types
of octane number can
be
obtained:
the
research octane number (RON) or motor octane number (MON). These numbers
are obtained by testing fuels in different circumstances, with the MON putting
more stress on the engine to see how fuels perform in challenging
circumstances. The octane number ratings on a gas pump often reflect an
average value.
These numbers are calibrated against a scale. Octane numbers can be adjusted
by putting additives in the fuel which will adjust the level of knock.
It is possible to have an octane number beyond 100, as iso-octane is just a point
on the scale. High performance fuels often have very high octane numbers;
rocket fuels, for example, have octane numbers over 100. The higher
the octane number, the more pressure the fuel needs to combust.

Specific Gravity:

Specific gravity usually refers to a material's density when compared to the

density of water. This number is given as a ratio which means that there are no
units when discussing it.
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By using a known specific gravity for a particular substance, it is possible to

determine what sample of the substance is pure or how concentrated it is. In
some industries, the density of two substances can be compared with each other
instead of with water when determining this measurement.
In most cases, specific gravity is given as the ratio of a certain substance's
density compared to the density of the same amount of fresh water at 39
degrees Fahrenheit (4 degrees Celsius). At this temperature, fresh water is at its
greatest density, which is 1 gram per milliliter. A substance with
a specific gravity lower than that of water will float on top of water, while an
object with a higher one will sink.

Specific gravity meter

gravity measurement kit

specific

Emulsification:

The breakdown of fat globules in the duodenum into tiny droplets, which
provides a larger surface area on which the enzyme pancreatic lipase can act to
digest the fats into fatty acids and glycerol. Emulsification is assisted by the
action of the bile salts.
Some emulsifying waxes are produced from petroleum-based compounds. Many
major cosmetics manufacturers utilize this form of emulsifying wax. Petroleumderived wax is often cheaper and more readily available than its vegetablesourced counterpart.
Vegetable-based emulsifying wax, however, is becoming more and more popular.
Soy and carnauba are two types of waxes harvested from plant sources. They
offer the same benefits for emulsification, and when used in candles, often burn
cleaner and more evenly than petroleum wax. They consist of the natural fats
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and esters found in plants. It is processed into a flake-like form that is then
marketed and sold. These flakes can be easily purchased in bulk to make
products at home.

Phenomenon

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Emulsifier