propane
(redirected from R-290)Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Medical.
propane,
CH3CH2CH3, colorless, gaseous alkanealkane, any of a group of aliphatic hydrocarbons whose molecules contain only single bonds (see chemical bond). Alkanes have the general chemical formula CnH2n+2.
..... Click the link for more information. . It is readily liquefied by compression and cooling. It melts at −189.9°C; and boils at −42.2°C;. Propane occurs in nature in natural gas and (in dissolved form) in crude oil; it is also a byproduct of petroleum refining. It is used chiefly as a fuel. For this purpose it is sold compressed in cylinders of various sizes, often mixed with other hydrocarbons, e.g., butane. Propane fuel is used in a type of cigarette lighter and in portable stoves and lamps.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia™ Copyright © 2013, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/
The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.
Propane
CH3CH2CH3, a saturated hydrocarbon that exists as a colorless, odorless combustible gas with a melting point of –187.7°C and a boiling point of –42.1°C. Its flammability limits when mixed with air are 2.1–9.5 percent (by volume). Propane is found in natural gas, casinghead gas, gases obtained from CO and H2, and the gases produced during petroleum refining. In industry, the catalytic dehydrogenation of propane yields propylene, and propane nitration produces nitromethane (mixed with nitroethane and nitropropane). Propane is also used as a solvent in, for example, removing alkanes from petroleum products. When mixed with butane, it can be used as an illuminating or household gas.
The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
propane
[′prō‚pān] (organic chemistry)
CH3CH2CH3 A heavy, colorless, gaseous petroleum hydrocarbon gas of the paraffin series; boils at -44.5°C; used as a solvent, refrigerant, and chemical intermediate.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
propane
a colourless flammable gaseous alkane found in petroleum and used as a fuel. Formula: CH3CH2CH3
Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005