HydrocarbonsHydrocarbons make up crude oil and natural gas, which are naturally occurring substances found in rock in the earth's crust. These organic raw materials are created by the compression of the remains of plants and animals in sedimentary rocks such as sandstone, limestone, and shale.???
The sedimentary rock itself is a product of deposits in ancient oceans and other bodies of water. As layers of sediment were deposited on the ocean floor, the decaying remains of plants and animals were integrated into the forming rock. The organic material eventually transforms into oil and gas after being exposed to specific temperatures and pressure ranges deep within the earth's crust.
The oil and gas industry is broken down into three main segments: upstream, midstream and downstream.
The oil and gas industry is broken down into three main segments:
Upstream involved in the exploration and production of oil and gas. These are the firms that search the world for reservoirs of the raw materials and then drill to extract that material. These companies are often known as "E&P" for "exploration and production."
Midstream are those that are focused on transportation. They are the ones responsible for moving the extracted raw materials to refineries to process the oil and gas. Midstream companies are characterized by shipping, trucking, pipelines, and storing of the raw materials.
Downstream businesses are the refineries. These are the companies responsible for removing impurities and converting the oil and gas to products for the general public, such as gasoline, jet fuel, heating oil, and asphalt.
The upstream segment of the oil and gas industry contains exploration activities, which include creating geological surveys and obtaining land rights, and production activities, which include onshore and offshore drilling.
Exploration and production is the common terminology applied to that portion of the petroleum industry which is responsible for exploring for and discovering new crude oil and gas fields, drilling wells and bringing the products to the surface.
Oil and gas exploration encompasses the processes and methods involved in locating potential sites for oil and gas drilling and extraction. Early oil and gas explorers relied upon surface signs like natural oil seeps, but developments in science and technology have made oil and gas exploration more efficient. Geological surveys are conducted using various means from testing subsoil for onshore exploration to using seismic imaging for offshore exploration.
The concept of the overall drilling process is relatively simple. There is a potential reservoir located deep beneath the earth's surface. In order to gain access and extract oil or gas, a hole must be drilled through the various rocks, materials and layers to reach it.
The oil well is created by drilling a long hole into the earth with an oil rig. A steel pipe (casing) is placed in the hole, to provide structural integrity to the newly drilled well bore. Holes are then made in the base of the well to enable oil to pass into the bore.
There are three primary forms of offshore drilling platforms : Jack-up rigs. Semi-submersible platforms. Drill ships.
Supply-end pipelines and railroads carry crude oil from production areas to a loading terminal at a port. Tankers then carry the crude oil directly to demand-side pipelines that connect to the refineries that convert the raw material into useful products.
Oil is normally transported by one of four options:
Crude oil pipelines are the most common, safest, and cheapest of all modes of crude oil and refined product transport. the most commonly used form of oil transportation is through oil pipelines. Pipelines are typically used to move crude oil from the wellhead to gathering and processing facilities and from there to refineries and tanker loading
Rail – Oil shipment by train has become a growing phenomenon as new oil reserves are identified across the globe.
Truck – while the most limited oil transportation method in terms of storage capacity,
Ship – where oil transport over land is not suitable, oil can be transported by ship.
The oil will then be placed there until ready for transportation.
An oil refinery is an industrial plant that transforms, or refines crude oil into various usable petroleum products such as diesel, gasoline and heating oils. Oil refineries essentially serve as the second stage in the crude oil production process following the actual extraction of crude oil up-stream, and refinery services are considered to be a down-stream segment of the oil and gas industry.
The first step in the refining process is distillation, where crude oil is heated at extreme temperatures to separate the different hydrocarbons.
Three major types of operation are performed to refine the oil into finished products
separation, conversion and treating.Refined Petroleum Products and Their UsesEach refined petroleum product obtained from crude oil has a specific use the first part of refining crude oil is to heat it until it boils. The boiling liquid is separated into different liquids and gases in a distillation column. These liquids are used to make petrol, paraffin, diesel fuel etc. Crude oil is a mixture of different chemical called hydrocarbons.