Petroleum is the world’s premiere energy source,
contributing approximately 40% of all the energy used in the United States. To
obtain the petroleum you must drill. In
the very early days oil wells were drilled where oil seeped out of the surface
of the Earth or had been detected in streams or brine wells.
When the turn of the century came along, the process was becoming more
advanced. Cable tool rigs were used
to drill. A steam engine powered a
drilling tool that pounded through the surface rock and the drill also cased the
well. A case is a string of pipes
as large as the diameter of the well. Each
pipe is lowered into the well and cemented.
Then further exploration of the well can be continued at a smaller
diameter. This is not a continuous
process, because of the slack time required to install the pipes.
Continuous processes were not seen until the rotary drill was developed.
These drills are very similar to the one’s used today. This type of drill has a bit attached to the end of a pipe.
The pipe rotates and the bit cuts up the rock.
When a new pipe is needed the pipe is just screwed on to the top of the
pipe currently in the well. The oil
is then refined and sold primarily as fuels for cars, trucks, and airplanes.
Bakersfield Oil Fields in California
The transportation sector uses 63% of the United
States oil supply, making it the main consumer.
The byproducts associated with oil consumption are cities congested with
traffic which leaves behind foul automobile emissions.
These emissions contribute half the urban air pollutants and almost one
third of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Because of this fact the refineries have been mandated by the government
to produce a better oil that improves air quality.
Therefore, gasoline is starting to get oxygenated.
These oxygenates are derived from ethanol and methanol.
Another problem arises with the fact that despite
rising oil prices consumption is not decreasing. We have developed a huge dependence on oil mainly to
transport us from one location to the next.
Even though the United States is the largest oil producer in the world,
we still are consuming more than we are producing.
Thereby we have created a dependency on foreign suppliers.
Bakersfield Oil Fields in California