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The abiogenic petroleum origin hypothesis proposes that most of earth's petroleum and natural gas deposits were formed inorganically, commonly known as abiotic oil. [1] Scientific evidence overwhelmingly supports a biogenic origin for most of the world's petroleum deposits. [2][3] Mainstream theories about the formation of hydrocarbons on earth ...
A petroleum reservoir or oil and gas reservoir is a subsurface accumulation of hydrocarbons contained in porous or fractured rock formations. Such reservoirs form when kerogen (ancient plant matter) is created in surrounding rock by the presence of high heat and pressure in the Earth's crust. Reservoirs are broadly classified as conventional ...
An oil refinery in Ahmadi Governorate in Kuwait. Petroleum or crude oil, also referred to as simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrogencarbons, [1] and is found in geological formations. The name petroleum covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude oil and petroleum products that consist of ...
Oil field in California, 1938. The modern history of petroleum began in the nineteenth century with the refining of paraffin from crude oil. The Scottish chemist James Young in 1847 noticed a natural petroleum seepage in the Riddings colliery at Alfreton, Derbyshire from which he distilled a light thin oil suitable for use as lamp oil, at the same time obtaining a thicker oil suitable for ...
These oil deposits were formed during the Miocene Epoch when marine plankton organisms accumulated in an ocean basin. [9] Over time, sediments buried the organisms 300 to 1000 meters below Earth's surface, subjecting them to high pressures. This process turned the organic matter into oil.
Petroleum geology is principally concerned with the evaluation of seven key elements in sedimentary basins: A structural trap, where a fault has juxtaposed a porous and permeable reservoir against an impermeable seal. Oil (shown in red) accumulates against the seal, to the depth of the base of the seal. Any further oil migrating in from the ...
A fossil fuel[a] is a carbon compound - or hydrocarbon -containing material such as coal, oil, and natural gas, [2] formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the remains of prehistoric organisms (animals, plants and planktons), a process that occurs within geological formations. Reservoirs of such compound mixtures can be extracted and burned ...
Some statistics on this page are disputed and controversial—different sources (OPEC, CIA World Factbook, oil companies) give different figures. Some of the differences reflect different types of oil included. Different estimates may or may not include oil shale, mined oil sands or natural gas liquids.