Gasoline
British Foreign Minister Ernest Bevin once said that “The Kingdom of Heaven runs on righteousness, but the Kingdom of Earth runs on alkanes.” Well, actually he said “runs on oil” not “runs on alkanes,” but they’re essentially the same. By far, the major sources of alkanes are the world’s natural gas and petroleum deposits. Laid down eons ago, these deposits are thought to be derived from the decomposition of plant and animal matter, primarily of marine origin. Natural gas consists chiefly of methane but also contains ethane, propane, and butane. Petroleum is a complex mixture of hydrocarbons that must be separated into fractions and then further refined before it can be used.