Crude oil contains various impurities that are separated during the refining process. To understand what oil is made of, one must look back millions of years to the ancient seas and forests where organic matter accumulated and transformed.
Understanding the Thermal Cracking of Kerogen in Oil Formation
Plankton and algae thrived in ancient oceans, and when they died, their bodies sank to the seafloor. Furthermore, trace amounts of metals like nickel and vanadium, picked up from the rock formations surrounding the oil reservoir, are found in the mixture.
Over time, layers of sediment buried these remains, creating an oxygen-poor environment that prevented complete decay. Pressure, Heat, and Transformation Buried under thousands of feet of sediment, the kerogen was subjected to immense pressure and rising temperatures.
Thermal Cracking of Kerogen Oil and Its Transformation Process
Impurities and Trace Elements Beyond the hydrocarbons, the composition of oil is not purely carbon and hydrogen. As the temperature increased, the kerogen thermally cracked into smaller, simpler molecules.
More About What is oil made of
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More perspective on What is oil made of can make the topic easier to follow by connecting earlier points with a few simple takeaways.
