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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 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.
Crude oil is classified as light, medium, or heavy according to its measured API gravity. Light crude oil has an API gravity higher than 31.1° (i.e., less than 870 kg/m 3) Medium oil has an API gravity between 22.3 and 31.1° (i.e., 870 to 920 kg/m 3) Heavy crude oil has an API gravity below 22.3° (i.e., 920 to 1000 kg/m 3)
Crude can refer to: Crude oil or simply crude, the unprocessed form of petroleum; Crude, an Australian documentary about the geology and economics of crude oil; Crude, an American documentary about oil companies and lawsuits in Ecuador; Crude, by Bongshang, 1993; Crude, a comic book series by Steve Orlando and Garry Brown
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] Most petroleum is converted into petroleum products, which include several classes of fuels. [2]
Per the "Regions and crude types" discussion above, California production is categorized by its own crude type. Sweet crude oil contains small amounts of hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide. High-quality, low-sulfur crude oil is commonly used for processing into gasoline and is in high demand, particularly in industrialized nations.
Heavy crude oils provide an interesting situation for the economics of petroleum development. The resources of heavy oil in the world are more than twice those of conventional light crude oil. In October 2009, the United States Geological Survey updated the Orinoco deposits (Venezuela) recoverable value to 513 billion barrels (8.16 × 10 10 m 3 ...
The world consumes 36 billion barrels (5.8 km 3) of oil per year, [1] with developed nations being the largest consumers. The United States consumed 18% of the oil produced in 2015. [2] The production, distribution, refining, and retailing of petroleum taken as a whole represents the world's largest industry in terms of dollar value.