Compare and contrast paper on Natural Gas vs Propane - Essay Example

pectives, and thereby provide a solution for a replacement for the more polluting fossil fuels of coal and petroleum is found to continue to drive human activity, till such time technology makes renewable energy a feasible solution. Propane is a gas at normal temperature and pressure. The chemical formula of propane is C3H8. It has high energy content, which makes it suitable as a fuel. Propane along with ethane and butane are present in natural gas and oil, from which it is separated at the refineries from crude oil or natural gas.

The amount of propane that can be extracted from natural gas and crude oil are approximately the same. (1). The physical properties of propane are a boiling point of -44 degrees F; specific gravity of propane gas 1.52; and specific gravity of liquid propane 0.51. Other physical properties of propane relevant to its use as a fuel include lower limit of flammability 2.15; upper limit of flammability 9.60; Flash Point -156 degrees F; ignition temperature in air; 920-1020 degrees F; maximum flame temperature 3595 degrees F; and an octane number above 100.

One cubic foot of propane is estimated to give 2516 BTUs. (2). Natural gas as the name suggests is a gas at normal temperature and pressure, and is a gas at any temperature above 161 degrees F. It has no chemical formula as it is a mixture of gases consisting of methane, ethane, propane, butanes, pentanes, carbon dioxide, oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and rare gases. The proportion of these gases in natural gases varies, making it difficult to have a fixed physical characteristic for natural gas.

However the primary constituent in natural gas is methane, up to ninety percent and so natural gas tends to have the properties of methane in being highly inflammable, burns easily and almost totally. Natural gas cooled to a temperature of -260 degrees F at atmospheric pressure become a liquid, which is called liquefied natural gas(LNG), In this form it occupies only about one 1/600th the