Kerosene: Encyclopedia II - Kerosene - Uses

Kerosene - Uses

At one time it was widely used in kerosene lamps but it is now mainly used in aviation fuel for jet engines (more technically Avtur, Jet-A, Jet-A1, Jet-B, JP-4, JP-5, JP-7 or JP-8). A form of kerosene known as RP-1 is burned with liquid oxygen as rocket fuel. These fuel grade kerosenes meet specifications as to smoke points and freeze points.

Its use as a cooking fuel is mostly restricted to some portable stoves for backpackers and to less developed countries, where it is usually less refined and contains impurities and even debris. It can also be used to remove lice from hair, but stings and can be dangerous on skin.

As a heating fuel, it is used in often portable stoves and is sold in some filling stations. It is sometimes used as a backup heat source for emergencies in the U.S. and deaths occur annually from mishandling by inexperienced users. The use of portable kerosene heaters is not recommended for closed indoor areas without a chimney due to the danger of buildup of carbon monoxide gas.

Kerosene is widely used in Japan as a home heating fuel for portable and installed kerosene heaters. In Japan, kerosene can be readily bought at any filling station or be delivered to homes.

It is also used as an organic solvent.

Kerosene is often used in the entertainment industry, as a fuel for fire dancing. Kerosene is not an appropriate fuel to use for indoor fire-dancing as it produces an unpleasant odour which overwhelms the audience. Methanol is a much better alternative. If the performance is outdoors however, kerosene is fine to use and makes quite a spectacular display.

More ubiquitous in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, kerosene space heaters were often built into kitchen ranges and kept many farm and fishing families warm and dry through the winter. At one time citrus growers used smudge pots fueled by kerosene to create a pall of thick smoke over a grove in an effort to prevent freezing temperatures from damaging crops. "Salamanders" were kerosene space heaters used on construction sites to dry out building materials and warm workers. Before the days of blinking electrically lighted road barriers, highway construction zones were marked at night by kerosene fired pot bellied torches. Most of these uses of kerosene created thick black smoke because of the low temperature of combustion.

A notable exception, discovered in the early 19th century, is the use of a mantel above the wick on a kerosene lamp. Looking like a delicate woven bag above the woven cotton wick, the mantel was a residue of mineral material which glowed white hot as it burned the volatile gases emanating from the blue flame at the base of the wick. These types of lamps are still in use today in areas of the world without electricity.

In the book Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, the firemen (who in the novel burn books) use kerosene to aid them in burning books.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Uses", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki