When cars were originally being made and designed, why was “gasoline” used rather than crude oil, especially since it was what came from the Earth?

Question

Cars today run on “gasoline” which has the hydrocarbons that work with the air and make the combustion possible, but why design engines like this, especially since the refining process is so arduous? Would it not have been easier and more logical to try using the crude oil straight from the Earth?

In: 16

Answer 1

For an internal combustion engine to run effectively, the fuel needs to be a few things. It needs to be energy-dense, reliably combustible, but not too easily combustible for handling reasons, free-flowing, and clean-burning.

Gasoline checks all those boxes, despite it needing to go through the refining process. Some of the lighter distillates tend to be too volatile, and the heavier ones are too viscous or burn dirty and leave engine deposits. Crude is a mix of all of them, so it can burn too fast AND too slow for an engine, burn dirty, be too viscous to handle/pump easily. It’s kinda the worst of all worlds when it comes to fuels.

Answer 2

For an internal combustion engine to run effectively, the fuel needs to be a few things. It needs to be energy-dense, reliably combustible, but not too easily combustible for handling reasons, free-flowing, and clean-burning.

Gasoline checks all those boxes, despite it needing to go through the refining process. Some of the lighter distillates tend to be too volatile, and the heavier ones are too viscous or burn dirty and leave engine deposits. Crude is a mix of all of them, so it can burn too fast AND too slow for an engine, burn dirty, be too viscous to handle/pump easily. It’s kinda the worst of all worlds when it comes to fuels.