What process is used to separate crude oil into its fractions?

The correct process used to separate crude oil into its fractions is fractional distillation. This method takes advantage of the different boiling points of the various components in crude oil.

In fractional distillation, the crude oil is heated in a distillation column, where it vaporizes and travels upward through the column. As the vapor rises, it cools and condenses at different heights depending on the boiling points of the components. The lower-boiling fractions condense near the top of the column, while those with higher boiling points condense lower down. Collecting these fractions allows for the separation of hydrocarbons into useful products like gasoline, kerosene, and diesel oil.

This process is particularly effective for separating complex mixtures like crude oil because it provides a method to refine it into various useful materials based on their properties, unlike filtration, which is used for separating solid particles from liquids, or evaporation, which is typically used for separating a dissolved substance from a solvent. Fission refers to the nuclear process of splitting an atom's nucleus and is unrelated to the separation of mixtures like crude oil.