Hydrogenation << `hy` druh juh NAY shuhn >> is a chemical process that adds hydrogen to a substance. Liquid oils are often hydrogenated to produce solid fats. For example, peanut oil is hydrogenated to change it to a solid and improve its odor and flavor. The hydrogenation process is important in refining gasolines. Hydrogen is added to the smaller molecules of gasoline that result when larger gasoline molecules have been cracked by heat and pressure. Hydrogenation is used in making crude oil from coal. In this process, powdered coal is mixed with a little oil and hydrogenated under heat and pressure.
A substance whose molecules contain some hydrogen atoms, but can accept more, is said to be unsaturated. For example, the gas ethylene is an unsaturated compound. When ethylene is hydrogenated, the double bond (chemical connection) that links its two carbon atoms breaks. Two hydrogen atoms are added to the molecule, and a single bond remains. The resulting compound is a gas called ethane. Ethane is called a saturated compound because its molecules contain as many hydrogen atoms as they can.
Catalysts (substances that speed up chemical reactions) are needed to make hydrogenation economical. In 1912, French chemist Paul Sabatier received the Nobel Prize in chemistry for discovering that nickel is a good hydrogenation catalyst. Other catalysts for hydrogenation include platinum and Raney nickel (an aluminum-nickel alloy treated with sodium hydroxide).
See also Coal (Coal research).
