Petroleum and Advantages

What is crude oil or petroleum? It is a natural liquid that is found in some permeable rocks that are below the top layer of the earth. It is composed of hydrocarbons of different sizes and types blended together. Oil is made from a slow adaptation of organic products. After liquid hydrocarbon is purified it can produce a variety of products such as flammable fuel, lubricants, and petrochemicals. These byproducts will have different color, make-up, and thickness. When crude oil is disassociated by purification, products produced are things such as kerosene, diesel fuel, gas, different alcohols, and benzene. Oil is divided into two categories, either asphalted compounds or paraffin. It is then referred to as having an asphalt, paraffin, or medium base.

Petroleum is a very versatile material. We use it daily but there are things made using petroleum that you would be surprised at. I was surprised to learn that plastic is made from petroleum. Plastic is used for toys, computers, in our homes, cars, and even clothing. Products made from petroleum are used to make roads and even as artificial rubber in tires. More things that come from petroleum are detergents, herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers, furniture, paints, upholstery, and backing for carpet.

Other very important things come from oil such as helium and sulfur. We all know, however, that petroleum is used mainly for fuel and lubricative oils. The everyday person really pays no attention to supplies of petroleum unless for some reason we don’t get as much of it as we usually do.

The quest for oil can take companies as far as six miles down into the earth. Even though it costs millions of dollars to drill for oil it is such a valuable resource it is worth the expense. Even though most oil is used for heating oil, gas or jet fuel, this mineral can also be used for electricity. Approximately 80% of oil stockpiles are in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Qatar, and Kuwait provide about 62.5% of the Middle East oil. Saudi Arabia, Russia, and the United States are the top three countries producing oil.

Today we do have quite a few choices other than petroleum. There are advancements for cars like ethanol, hybrids, and hydrogen. These seem to look promising but many things have to come together before they are ready for the market. Although we have these promising new advancements they have not been tested enough to know they will save consumers money and be environmentally friendly.

After studying costs and advantages of petroleum, tests conclude that oil is the best by far and easiest to transport.

By: Bradley Skierkowski