Exploring the Relationship Between Carbon Chain Length and Heat Output in Alcohols

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It was hypothesised that the longer the carbon chain of the alcohol, the greater the heat output and flame length would be. It was also hypothesised that the longer the flame length the less heat it would produce as there was not a focused point of heat output. The results that were gathered from the experiments did not support the hypothesis. Although this was the case, the results taken are still valuable in some ways. For example, it was noted that as the length of carbon chain in alcohols increased, the flame length decreased. This was quite fascinating. Further research into why this is the case could perhaps be beneficial. It was also discovered that increased flame length increases enthalpy of ethanol. This also provides further ares …show more content…

The experimental design itself was very crude when comparing it to an industrial standard. Although the aim of this experiment was not to create the most effective system, it no doubt would have helped with the accuracy of the results. While experimenting, doors and windows were left open allowing wind and draughts inside the room of the experiment either cooling the calorimeter or lowering the flame length. Precautions were taken to avoid this yet it could not be avoided by using a shield. The spirit burner wicks were all charred in some form or another which could have influenced the results as well. Once burned, the wicks also left residue inside the fuel being tested. Another factor that could have changed the results in a significant way was the possibility that the fuels were mixed. Fuels were not provided in separate bottles to individual groups as multiple groups of students were testing and thus fuels were shared. The risk here is that fuels could have been mixed in the ones used for testing, for example, ethanol could have been mixed with butanol influencing the enthalpy or flame length. It is unknown if this occurred in any manner and although it possibly could have not happened, it is still a possibility. Another experimental error that could have changed the results in some way was that the calorimeters need to be cooled down after heating. This was done using a tap to cool down the thermometer and …show more content…

For example, investigating the amount of carbon dioxide produced from burning the fuels. This could provide information of the efficiency of the burning of the fuel and also how eco friendly it is. Another research area is investigating the ratio of wick length affecting flame length.

By looking at the results, applications for the real world could be made. These include industries using longer flames when suitable to heat objects more efficiently by just increasing wick length. Another application could be to use alcohols like 1-pentanol and butanol to be used as fuel as they have the highest enthalpy compared to hexanol and ethanol. Fuels like ethanol or 1-propanol could be mixed with everyday petrol to increase energy output.

In summary, the results suggested that as the carbon chain increases in alcohols, the shorter the flame. The results also suggested that if the flame length increases, the enthalpy increases as well in a linear function. It can be said that the experiment that investigated whether the longer the carbon chain length would increase enthalpy is either invalid or not accurate. This can be the case as the theory should be correct as there are extra bonds that need to be broken which in turn will release more energy. Recommendation to improve the design to gather better results were made. Nevertheless, the experiment produced some results and provided further areas of research and

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