Oil has been a vital instrument that helps make our life easier. You may not know it, but our daily activities include the use of this non-renewable resource. You use it in your transportation vehicles. Crude oil, which is the raw product, is turned into petroleum which can fuel your cars, buses, ships, and even airplanes. It is turned into diesel, gasoline and jet fuel to power up our everyday mediums of transport. Even establishments use oil energy to work and manufacture their products. Factories that produce your daily electricity in the house runs with the help of oil. Without it, electricity cannot be generated. This non-renewable energy has been used since the 19th century and was further developed into what we currently have today.
Do you know where we can find oil? In what ways do we use it? Here are some facts that you need to know about oil and its use:
1. Formation
Crude oil was formed years ago. Dead plants and animals millions of years ago were left on the ground. After multiple layers of rocks and sand were formed on top of them, they converted to oil. This process happened to dead plants and animals due to the extreme heat, pressure, and weight of the ground. For some plants, it was known that they were turned into natural gas.
2. Location
Oil can now be found underground within the sedimentary rocks. It is located in small spaces, usually where rocks are curved, forming a small space below them. There are some instances wherein the oil is found on the ground. It forms bubbles leaking from underneath. Today, oil rigs have been used to collect more crude oil around the world.
3. Extraction
Oil can be obtained with the use of drilling equipment and tools. In Oklahoma, a manufacturing company offers exclusive and high-quality products for oil extraction. Their machines are used by different companies to pursue the oil reservoirs the world still has. The role of the drill is to dig up a hole underground which will be the passageway of the oil upwards. This process may take years and years. Oil can even be acquired below the sea. The extraction has to be carefully done to avoid accidents and spillage. This source of energy is harmful to the environment and living things. Permanent damage may occur once there is an oil spill.
4. Transportation
Oil retrieved from underground are transported through tanked vehicles and pipelines. Raw oil must be transferred to an oil refinery to be generated into its different forms like petroleum, heating oil, gasoline, wax, and lubricating oils.
Keep in mind that oil is a non-renewable source of energy. It cannot be replaced nor replenished anymore. It may run out after some years. It was a product of the Carboniferous period of more than 300 million years ago. This process cannot happen again due to the difference in the current atmosphere of the Earth. What you can do as responsible individuals is to make sure that you use this form of energy in the most resourceful way you can.
