I am looking for the answer to how 1 liter of gasoline can create 2.34 kg or 5.1 lbs. of CO2e. How much does a liter of gas weigh? Is it just about GWP or is there a better explanation to that methodology.
Steve Lessard
Consultant
Island Carbon Management Solutions Ltd.
Canada
Calculation of Gas to CO2e
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A litre of gasoline weighs 0.76 kg. and produces 2.356 kg. of CO2 upon combustion in a motor vehicle. I do not know the chemistry, but recall that most engines combine about 15 times as much air as gasoline in the combustion process. Most of the oxygen in the air becomes part of the CO2. The weight of the by product of the combustion is composed of the weight of the combination of the fuel and the air used to combust it.
Mel Tremper
United States
...
Hi Steve,
There are two parts (at least) to Greenhouse Gas creation from gasoline.
1. The actual conversion of gasoline into Carbon Dioxide and Water 'inherent' in burning the gasoline. So that's 1 litre of C8H18 combined with oxygen to form CO2 and water mostly.
2. The 'life cycle assessment' cost of exploring for gasoline, building roads into the area, drilling the well, building the petroleum extraction equipment, extracting the petroleum from the ground, the pipeline to take it somewhere, the cost of the refinery, etc.
So the value you report for "Greenhouse Gas creation from the burning of gasoline" depends on how you're counting. Is it just the CO2 inherent in burning the actual litre of gasoline, or is it all the other greenhouse gas created in getting the gasoline to the engine in the first place.
Usually it's the sum total of both.
Norm Ruttan
President
iWasteNot Systems
Canada
www.iwastenotsystems.com