Coal oil is a shale oil obtained from the destructive distillation of cannel coal, mineral wax, or bituminous shale, once used widely for illumination.[1]
Chemically similar to the more refined, petroleum-derived kerosene, it consists mainly of several hydrocarbons of the alkane series, with 10 to 16 carbon atoms in each molecule, with a boiling point of 175 to 325 °C (347 to 617 °F), higher than gasoline or the petroleum ethers, and lower than the oils.
Because kerosene was first derived from cannel coal, classified as terrestrial type of oil shale,[2] it continued to be popularly referred to as "coal oil" even after production shifted to petroleum as a feedstock.[3][4][5] Refined hydrocarbons of the alkane series with 10 to 16 carbon atoms are the same thing whether taken from coal or petroleum.
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- ^ Evelyn Richardson (20 October 2009). "Here and There: Call It Coal oil or kerosene, Fuel Still Has Its Uses". Logan County (Kentucky) News-Democrat & Leader. Archived from the original on 14 July 2011. Retrieved 9 January 2011.
- ^ Maris, Clarence (1921). "Lesson 4, The Coal Oil or Kerosene Lamp.". Dangers and chemistry of fire, for grammar schools. Columbus, Ohio: The F.J. Heer Printing Company. Retrieved 9 January 2011.
- ^ Drake, Paul (2004). "Definition of "coal oil" as common term for kerosene". What Did They Mean By That? A Dictionary of Historical and Genealogical Terms, Old and New. Heritage Books, Inc. p. 60. ISBN 978-0-7884-2500-4. Retrieved 9 January 2011.