Petroleum Extraction and Processing

See also Chemical Engineering Coal Liquefaction Detergents Distillation Gasoline Processing and Production Petroleum Extraction and Processing Plastics Engineering. 

See also Biofuels and Synthetic Fuels Coal Gasification Hazardous-Waste Disposal Hydroelectric Power Plants Industrial Pollution Control Petroleum Extraction and Processing Steam Energy Technology Wind Power Technologies. 

Petroleum extraction and processing is the human exploitation of fossil fuels consisting of hydrocarbons in the form of crude oil and natural gas. The primary use of processed petroleum products is as powerful fuels, particularly for transportation in the form of gasoline, diesel fuel, or jet fuel, and for heating purposes, which account for 84 percent of petroleum use. The remainder of processed petroleum products is used in the petrochemical industry as fuel additives and to create applications such as plastics, specialty chemicals, solvents, fertilizer, pesticides, and pharmaceuticals. Worldwide, about 37 billion barrels of crude oil and natural gas are extracted each year. 

Petroleum extraction and processing encompass the activities through which crude oil and natural gas are taken from their natural reservoirs below the surface of the earth on land and sea and treated so they can be used as fuels and materials for the petrochemical industry. Reservoirs can be detected by applying the results of petroleum geology, the science describing under what circumstances oil and gas reservoirs were created during ancient times and how they can be found. 

Petroleum extraction and processing is the center of one of the world s most valuable industries. From 2005 to 2009, annual global production of crude oil and natural gas yms remarkably constant at around 37 billion barrels of oil equivalent (BOE). This... 

Fascinating Facts About Petroleum Extraction and Processing... 

Universities and Research Institutes. Historically, university education and research into petroleum extraction and processing were done primarily by leading universities of the United States, Canada, Europe, Japan, and the former Soviet Union. With the key exception of the United States, most oil-producing nations were developing countries, particularly in the Middle East, southwest Asia, and Africa, and lacked national petroleum know-how. By 2010, there was a strong tendency for universities in oil-producing nations to conduct research and provide education locally. 

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