Reis, Alfred

Even though the history of crude oil could be traced back by more than two thousand years, real production of crude oil perhaps began in August 27, 1859, when the first industrial-scale crude oil well with a depth of 22 meters was opened in Oil Creek, Pennsylvania. After this first industrial crude oil well was opened, there was the commencement of a rapid development of crude oil production and treatment. Probably, this day could be said to mark the birth of modem cmde oil chemistry. In 1878, the Swedish businessman Alfred B. Nobel together with his brothers formed the Naphtha Company Brothers Nobel. The company extracted the cmde oil in Baku, Russia and transported it to the first cmde oil refineries via the pipelines built by Naphtha Co., which still exists now. 

When the real activities in the laboratory are established another, contradictory, myth is exposed the bad equipment and primitive state of the laboratory. To the examples already given can be added Alfred Nobel, whose first laboratory was his kitchen conditions in his first factory were fairly primitive. [ tamligen primitiv/a/. ] Intriguingly the myth of the primitive laboratory does not exclude financial success. Of course it is part of the pioneer myth, stressing hard work, little support, reduced circumstances, and eventual success. The contribution of scientific research was minimal. True, similar myths turn up when academic chemists describe their careers. But if the images of the university laboratory and the industrial laboratory at certain levels were similar, there were important differences. Theory was not part of the industrial myth, which underscores the fact that modem science had few practical applications in early chemical industry. ... 

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