9 Interesting Facts about Oil

August 24, 2018

Oil and oil products are part of everyone’s daily activities. From fuel to cosmetics to appliances, there are thousands of uses for oil. With so many products containing petroleum, here are some fun and interesting facts about oil.

9 Interesting Facts about Oil

1. In 1854, the Pennsylvania Rock Oil Company became the first company to drill for oil. Up to that time, crude oil was collected from where the crude oil seeped to the surface. People would fill buckets from these seeps and burn the crude for fuel.
2. The first successful oil well in North America was in Oil Springs, Ontario, Canada, in 1858. This field is still producing a small quantity of oil today.
3. When oil was first drilled for on an industrial Scale, it was refined into Kerosene and replaced whale oil in household lamps.
4. A barrel of oil is equivalent to 42 US gallons, or 159 liters. This standard measurement was adopted in 1866.
5. Only 50 percent of crude oil is refined into fuel.
6. In addition to the products mentioned earlier, ink, clothing, detergents, and bandages all contain oil by-products.
7. In 2017 the top nine oil-producing countries were the United States, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Canada, Iran, Iraq, China, the United Arab Emirates, and Brazil.
8. The top nine oil producing states in the US as of May 2018 were Texas, North Dakota, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Alaska, California, Colorado, Wyoming, and Louisiana.
9. Since 2014, five new oil refineries have been built in the United States. Before that, five refineries were constructed from 1980 – 1998.

Oil and oil products will continue to be part of everyday life for a long time. As technology improves, the exploration and production of oil will change. Advanced drilling techniques will enable exploration companies to tap into reservoirs of crude that are unreachable today. Advances in production will allow additional crude to be extracted, in an efficient, low-cost manner.

Additional Information and Resources

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