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Petroleum [a] is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture. It consists mainly of hydrocarbons, [1] and is found in geological formations. The term petroleum refers both to naturally occurring unprocessed crude oil, as well as to petroleum products that consist of refined crude oil.
Petroleum is a naturally occurring liquid found in rock formations. It consists of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights, plus other organic compounds. It is generally accepted that oil is formed mostly from the carbon rich remains of ancient plankton after exposure to heat and pressure in Earth 's crust over hundreds ...
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 ...
Petroleum products are materials derived from crude oil as it is processed in oil refineries. Unlike petrochemicals , which are a collection of well-defined usually pure organic compounds, petroleum products are complex mixtures. [ 1 ]
Location of United States petroleum refineries, 2012. The United States petroleum refining industry, the world's largest, is most heavily concentrated along the Gulf Coast of Texas and Louisiana. In 2012, US refiners produced 18.5 million barrels per day of refined petroleum products. [18] Of this amount, 15 percent was exported. [19]
Petroleum is a fossil fuel that can be drawn from beneath the Earth's surface. Reservoirs of petroleum are formed through the mixture of plants, algae, and sediments in shallow seas under high pressure. Petroleum is mostly recovered from oil drilling. Seismic surveys and other methods are used to locate oil reservoirs.
Petroleum refinery in Anacortes, Washington, United States. Petroleum refining processes are the chemical engineering processes and other facilities used in petroleum refineries (also referred to as oil refineries) to transform crude oil into useful products such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), gasoline or petrol, kerosene, jet fuel, diesel oil and fuel oils.
Top 5 oil-producing countries 1980–2022 World oil production. This is a list of countries by oil production (i.e., petroleum production), as compiled from the U.S. Energy Information Administration database for calendar year 2023, tabulating all countries on a comparable best-estimate basis.