2. Cracking

About this Lecture

Lecture

In the second mini-lecture, we move to cracking, an industrial process used to make small to medium-length alkanes and alkenes from long-chain alkanes. Alkanes and alkenes of different short and medium lengths have a variety of uses, including as fuels for cars, boats, and other means of transport, and electricity generation.

Course

In this short course, Dr Shane Lo Fan Hin (University of Sussex) introduces alkenes: organic compounds which contain a C=C double bond. We begin by: (i) their formulas, discussing how they can be made, and some of their reactions; then (ii) looking at cracking of alkanes into smaller alkanes and alkenes; before finally (iii) looking at how alkenes can polymerise via addition polymerisation.

Lecturer

Dr. Lo Fan Hin has been teaching organic chemistry at the University of Sussex for the past 10 years. Since then, he has won the Excellence in Teaching Award - both university and student-led - four times since working there. In 2021, he was promoted to senior lecturer, and continues to teach across many different fields and modules in organic chemistry.