Oil refinery
An oil refinery is an industrial plant that converts crude oil into fuels, chemical feedstocks and other petroleum products.
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Refined petroleum products serve uses that include transportation, heating, road paving, electricity generation and chemical production.
VerifiedDistillation separates heated crude oil into fractions according to their boiling points. Lighter fractions rise higher in the distillation tower, while heavier fractions remain lower or settle at the bottom.
VerifiedThe refining process proceeds through preparation, separation, conversion, treatment and blending, followed by storage of the finished products.
VerifiedBefore crude oil enters high-temperature processing units, water, salts, sand and other impurities are removed. This preparation helps reduce corrosion, fouling and damage to catalysts in subsequent units.
VerifiedAfter distillation, cracking breaks large hydrocarbon molecules in heavy streams into smaller, lighter molecules. This conversion increases the yield of gasoline-range, diesel-range and other fuel streams.
VerifiedCrude oil cannot be used directly in most engines or industrial systems. Refining separates, converts and treats it to produce usable materials such as gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, liquefied petroleum gas, asphalt and petrochemical feedstock.
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