Propane is a gas having chemical Formula C3H8. You can call it as a flammable gas of hydrocarbon. How propane comes in existence? There are two processes as refining of petroleum and processing of natural gas. Now, when it is about combustion of this gas, then many small factors need to know.
The most accurate way to represent the combustion of propane is through its chemical equation to clear your view.
Propane Combustion
Combustion describes about the burning of propane at the time when the amount of oxygen is sufficient for its proper reaction and this is known as propane combustion. So, what reaction takes place here? Propane when burns it gives out enormous heat along with the formation of carbon-di-oxide and water vapor.
Now, the combustion of propane may be described by the chemical equation
Propane + Oxygen รขโ โ Carbon Dioxide + Water + Heat
C3H8 + 5 O2 รขโ โ 3 CO2 + 4 H2O + Heat
Another case that is required to describe is just about the situation when there is propane, but the oxygen is not sufficient. Now, what will happen? At this stage combustion will take place and it will just be an incomplete reaction. However, in this case too you can easily write the equation of combustion. It means when there is no sufficient amount of oxygen, then in place of only emitting carbon-di-oxide or CO2, the reaction produces carbon mono oxide or CO along with carbon-di-oxide or CO2. This is somehow poisons and completely dangerous for health and environment.
Now, during lack of oxygen the combustion of propane may be described by the chemical equation
Gas + Oxygen = Water + Carbon Dioxide + Carbon Monoxide + Heat
2 C3H8 + 9 O2 รขโ โ 4 CO2 + 2 CO + 8 H2O + Heat
How combustion of propane takes place in daily life?
Propane is used in daily life with LPG. The combination of propane with air has a proper ratio or amount. If you go through its proper limit, then the lower percentage is 2.15% and upper is 9.6%. For a complete burning or combustion, it is important. In case the value takes place more than this with a rich mixture, then the process will be incomplete. For the most suitable condition of combustion 4% of this gas propane burns with 96% of air. So, it is an exact and optimistic situation of ignition.
Here, you can easily understand that burning of propane takes place in two different situations and hence, two different equations take place.
Undoubtedly, these equations are very easy, but one must know about propane and other carbon-hydrogen combined molecules. This is because a lot of processes take place at the moment when carbon or hydrogen losing their one bond or combining this. Sometimes expression of molecular weight also takes place and if you want to know about molar mass, then it is just 44.1 g/mol. A proper study comes under Organic chemistry. One can easily enjoy reading this branch of chemistry to understand more about Propane and other carbon chemicals.
