Pentane from Oil

Crude oil is refined by "cracking", the process in which large molecules are broken up into smaller molecules. The products of the cracking process include gasoline (petrol), kerosene, heating oil and lubricants. Catalysts can be used to further refine these hydrocarbons.

Rice University scientists have discovered that sub-nanometer clusters of active tungsten oxide lying on top of inert zirconium oxide (zirconia) are a highly efficient catalyst that turns straight-chain molecules of pentane, one of the many hydrocarbons present in gasoline (petrol), into better burning branched-chain hydrocarbons. This process of rearranging the carbon and hydrogen atoms in a molecule is referred to as isomerization.

Reference:
Nikolaos Soultanidis, Wu Zhou, Antonis C. Psarras, Alejandro J. Gonzalez, Eleni F. Iliopoulou, Christopher J. Kiely, Israel E. Wachs, Michael S. Wong. Relatingn-Pentane Isomerization Activity to the Tungsten Surface Density of WOx/ZrO2. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2010; : 100903140709054 DOI: 10.1021/ja105519y

Further Reading
Organic Nomenclature
Naming Straight Chain Alkanes
Naming Branched-Chain Alkanes
Isomers of Alkanes
Uses of Hydrocarbons
Ethene

Study Questions

1. What is meant by the term hydrocarbon?
2. Give the names of 4 hydrocarbons.
3. Give the molecular formula for each of the hydrocarbons named above.
4. Give the molecular formula and the condensed molecular formula for pentane.
5. Draw the structural formula for pentane.
6. Draw the structural formula for all the possible isomers of pentane.
7. Name each of the isomers drawn above.
8. Why do you think that the branched-chain isomers of pentane are referred to as "better burning" hydrocarbons? Explain your answer.