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octane

 
Dictionary: oc·tane   (ŏk'tān') pronunciation
n.
  1. Any of various isomeric paraffin hydrocarbons with the formula C8H18, found in petroleum and used as a fuel and solvent.
  2. An octane number.

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WordNet: octane
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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: any isomeric saturated hydrocarbon found in petroleum and used as a fuel and solvent


Wikipedia: Octane
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Octane
Identifiers
CAS number 111-65-9
PubChem 356
RTECS number RG8400000
SMILES
InChI
ChemSpider ID 349
Properties
Molecular formula C8H18
Molar mass 114.2285 g/mol
Appearance colorless liquid
Density 0.703 g/ml, liquid
Melting point

−57 °C (216 K)

Boiling point

125.52 °C (398.7 K)

Solubility in water Immiscible
Viscosity 0.542 cP at 20 °C
Thermochemistry
Std enthalpy of
formation
ΔfHo298
−250 kJ/mol
Std enthalpy of
combustion
ΔcHo298
−5430 kJ/mol
Hazards
EU classification Flammable (F)
Harmful (Xn)
Dangerous for
the environment (N)
R-phrases R11, R38, R50/53,
R65, R67
S-phrases (S2), S9, S16, S29, S33,
S60, S61, S62
Flash point 13 °C
Autoignition
temperature
220 °C
Related compounds
Related alkanes Heptane
2,2,4-Trimethylpentane
Except where noted otherwise, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C, 100 kPa)
Infobox references

Octane is a straight-chain alkane with the chemical formula CH3(CH2)6CH3.

Octane has 18 structural isomers (25 including stereoisomers):

Metaphorical use

Octane became well-known in American popular culture in the mid- and late-sixties, when gasoline companies boasted of "high octane" levels in their gasoline on television commercials. These commercials are referring to the octane rating, which is a measure for the anti-knocking properties of gasoline. The octane rating is not related to the amount of octane contained in the gasoline.

These commercials had disappeared by the time of the 1973 Oil Crisis, which spared gasoline companies the need to compete via advertising. "Octane" was rarely cited in non-technical contexts over the next two decades.

The compound adjective "high-octane" was apparently first used in its figurative sense (i.e. without reference to gasoline) in a book review of Michael Crichton's novel Jurassic Park (1990), which appeared in the newspaper New York Newsday. The review, by Gregory Feeley, called the novel "intellectually provocative, high-octane entertainment," and was quoted the following year in the front matter of the novel's paperback edition, which sold more than 15 million copies in the United States. By the mid-nineties, the phrase was commonly being used to as an intensifier, and (despite the paucity of references to octane in any other context) has apparently found a place in modern English vernacular.

References

External links


Translations: Octane
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Dansk (Danish)
n. - oktan

Nederlands (Dutch)
octaan

Français (French)
n. - octane

Deutsch (German)
n. - Oktan

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (χημ.) οκτάνιο

Italiano (Italian)
ottano

Português (Portuguese)
n. - octana (f)

Русский (Russian)
октан

Español (Spanish)
n. - octano

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - oktan

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
辛烷

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 辛烷

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 옥탄

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - オクタン

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) الأوكتين ( هيدروكربون برافيني)‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮אוקטן, סוג של פחמן מימני‬


 
 

 

Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Octane" Read more
Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved.  Read more