How is kerosene made?
Kerosene is obtained from the fractional distillation of petroleum at 150 °C and 275 °C (carbon chains from the C12 to C15 range). Typically, kerosene directly distilled from crude oil requires some treatment, either in a Merox unit or a hydrotreater, to reduce its sulfur content and its corrosiveness. Kerosene can also be produced by a hydrocracker, which is used to upgrade the parts of crude oil that would otherwise only be good for fuel oil. Kerosene was first refined from a naturally-occurring asphaltum called Albertite by Abraham Gesner in 1846, founding the modern petroleum industry in the process. Gesner went on to establish his Kerosene Gaslight Company to market kerosene around the world in 1850. Scottish chemist James Young built the first truly commercial oil-works in the world at Bathgate in 1851, using oil extracted from locally mined Torbanite, shale and bituminous coal. Polish chemist Ignacy Łukasiewicz discovered the means of refining kerosene from the less expensive se
