A 5 page paper that begins with the history and historical evolution of gasoline as fuel for vehicles. The writer discusses American consumption of gasoline and what alternatives are now being promoted. The paper reports alternative power sources such as steam and electricity with batteries for autos were introduced as early as the 1880s. Statistical data included. Bibliography lists 5 sources.
Name of Research Paper File: MM12_PGamgas.rtf
Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
automobile was issued in 1895 to Charles Duryea in Massachusetts (Bellis, 2009). During the very early part of the 20th century, oil companies were producing gasoline (Bellis, 2009). Gasoline is
a by-product in the petroleum industry. In fact, it is derived from kerosene (Bellis, 2009). Gasoline is manufactured through a distillation process that separates different volatile elements in crude
petroleum (Bellis, 2009). It was the process that made gasoline that were invented (Bellis, 2009). It was also the invention of different agents that are used to ensure the quality
of the gasoline (Bellis, 2009). When automobiles were invented, there was a need for a different kind of fuel. Prior to automobiles things like coal, camphene, and kerosene were used
to for lighting but the new automobiles needed a direct type of fuel, one that was a raw material (Bellis, 2009). Refineries were built to accommodate the need to convert
crude oil into gasoline (Bellis, 2009). As automobiles became more popular more needs became apparent. For instance, something was needed to eliminate the engine knocking and something was needed to
increase the efficiency of these early auto engines (Bellis, 2009). What was invented then was a process that was known as cracking, which is a process through which "heavy hydrocarbon
molecules are broken up into lighter molecules by means of heat, pressure, and sometimes catalysts" (Bellis, 2009). This process was improved in 1913 by William Meriam Burton who invented
thermal cracking that used both heat and pressure to accomplish the same outcomes (Bellis, 2009). That process was improved again in 1937 when Eugene Houdry invented the catalytic cracking process
(Bellis, 2009). This last process applies "catalysts that create chemical reactions, producing more gasoline" (Bellis, 2009). Other inventions that improved gasoline included polymeraizatino, alkylation; isomerization and reforming (Bellis, 2009).