Oil refining: introduction
Crude
oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons. It was formed millions of years ago from the
remains of microscopic plants and animals. It is a non-renewable resource - once
the existing deposits are used up, no more will be formed. Although we are using
crude oil at the rate of over 3000 million tonnes per year, known reserves are
actually going up. This is because new deposits are being discovered and new
technology is making it possible to extract oil from previously uneconomic
sources.
Some background
The use of crude oil that seeped naturally from the ground goes back to
prehistoric times. The first oil well was drilled in 1859 by 'Colonel' Duke in
Pennsylvania, USA. The well struck oil at just 69 feet (about 20 m).
Oil refining: fact file
| World consumption |
3 400 million tonnes per year |
| UK consumption |
84 million tonnes per year |
| Manufacture |
Fractional distillation and cracking |
| Raw material |
Obtained from underground or undersea deposits in various
parts of the world
|
 |
Petrol |
30% |
 |
Industrial heating oil /
diesel fuel |
28% |
 |
Marine fuel oil |
13% |
 |
Jet fuel |
8% |
 |
Refinery fuel |
6% |
 |
Liquid petroleum gas |
5% |
 |
Home heating oil |
4% |
 |
Lubricating oil |
4% |
 |
Bitumen |
2% |
 |
 |
 |
| Map of pipelines |
Map |
Aerial view of site |
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| Unlabelled diagram of the fractionating column |
Labelled diagram of the fractionating column |
|
 |
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| Unlabelled diagram of the cracker reactor |
Labelled diagram of the cracker reactor |
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Oil refining: on the web
last update March 2006
