Have you ever wondered about the origin of oil, the basic history of oil use, as well as the prehistoric power? No? Neither did I until I came across with the following information.
Oil is a fossil fuel that when burnt produces energy. Fossil fuels power the world and currently provide about 80% of our energy. Oil has been known and used since the most ancient times and was mainly used as a liniment or medicine, not as a fuel. Fossil fuels are the remains of prehistoric animals (diatoms) and plants (plankton) that become oil, coal and natural gas. When these animals and plants died, they sank to the bottom of the oceans and swamps that covered the earth 300 million yrs ago. Over time, they’re covered with layers of rock and dirt called sediments. The weight of the layers of sediment and the heat from deep inside the earth caused the prehistoric remains to turn into oil. Oil flows from natural springs and the first oil well at 69 ft. deep was drilled in the Pennsylvania region by Edwin Drake in 1859; it produced 15 barrels a day.
As a fuel, oil was originally used as kerosene for lighting, replacing animal, vegetable and coal oils where it also came to be used in furnaces. Its biggest use came with the development of automobile and all forms of locomotion—cars, trucks, buses, trains, ships, and airplanes—are fueled by oil, diesel or gasoline. But it’s also used in the production of products that people use everyday. Fuel oil has also been burnt to produce electricity.
The 3 major fuels are coal, oil and natural gas. Coal—used primarily to produce electricity where it provides us with light, motive power from electric motors, and our many electronic devices. Oil—gives us our mobility, our cars, planes, trains, trucks, and boats. Natural gas—is used primarily to produce heat, for our buildings, hot water, and industrial processes. More information are available at http://www.bydesign.com/fossilfuels/links/html/oil/oil_history.html.
It took millions of years to make the oil that we use today and when the earth’s oil has been used up, we could no longer replace it that’s why scientists are looking at the solar and wind power as alternative energy sources. It is just eminent to say that saving oil or conserving energy through reduced usage of energy-related products greatly helps save our natural resources.
So, why is fuel economy important? Fueleconomy.gov provides comprehensive information on Improved Fuel Economy that saves us money. We can save $200-$1,500 in fuel costs per year by choosing the most efficient vehicle that meets our needs where it can add up to thousands of dollars over a vehicle’s lifetime. The fuel economy of our current vehicle can also be increased by maintaining our vehicles and adopting good driving habits. It strengthens national energy security as better fuel economy can reduce our dependence on foreign oil. It protects the environment since burning fossil fuels such as gasoline or diesel contributes to a number of environmental problems, such as air pollution (smog) and global climate change. In addition, spills from refining and transporting oil and petroleum products damage ecosystems and pollute groundwater and streams.
Fuel economy conserves resources—Almost all of the cars and trucks we drive run on fuels derived from oil. Oil is a non-renewable resource, and while there is some debate as to how long this resource will last, we will eventually have to find new ways to power highway vehicles. Until other alternatives are developed, it makes sense to use fossil resources such as oil more efficiently to buy time to develop new and better energy sources and to make the transition to these sources smoother and less expensive. Visit http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/why.shtml for further reading.
Tidbits: U.S. uses more than 20 million barrels of oil each day. China uses nearly 7 million barrels each day and Canada also uses over 2 million. Thus, over 82 million barrels are used daily worldwide. A barrel of crude oil is about 42 gallons where approximately 19.5 gallons of automobile gasoline is generated from one barrel of crude oil.
Finally, if you are an aggressive stock market investor or someone fascinated with oil reserves or investments of all sorts, check out for the latest updates on oil or energy prices at http://www.bloomberg.com/energy/. Remember, When the price of oil goes up, the price of gasoline goes up. When the gasoline price goes up, the price of the products that requires transport or transfer from one place to another in a gasoline-powered vehicle also goes up.
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