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X Y Z Gasoline /ˈɡæsəliːn/, or petrol /ˈpɛtrəl/ is a
transparent, petroleum-derived liquid that is used primarily as
a fuel in internal combustion engines. It consists mostly of
organic compounds obtained by the fractional distillation of
petroleum, enhanced with a variety of additives. Some gasolines
also contain ethanol as an alternative fuel. In North America,
the term gasoline is often shortened in colloquial usage to gas,
but some people use the term petrol, which is the common name in
the UK and elsewhere in the Commonwealth of Nations. Under
normal ambient conditions, its material state is liquid, unlike
liquefied petroleum gas or natural gas. Gasoline is more
volatile than diesel oil, Jet-A, or kerosene, not only because
of the base constituents, but also because of additives.
Volatility is often controlled by blending with butane, which
boils at −0.5 °C. The volatility of petrol is determined by the
Reid vapor pressure (RVP) test. The d