
Come and listen to a story about a man named Jed
A poor mountaineer, barely kept his family fed,
Then one day he was shootin at some food,
And up through the ground came a bubblin' crude.
Oil that is, black gold, Texas tea.
I'm hoping that some of you are old enough (or have seen the reruns) to remember the Beverly Hillbillies?! Good ol' Jed and the gang hit it rich with "Texas tea"! Though it may be debatable among Beverly Hills aficionados about exactly where the Clampetts hit oil, Texas is the highest producing U.S. state for crude oil. But crude oil is only the beginning of the story.
Crude oil is refined into many different products to meet our demand for petroleum for a wide range of uses, but primarily transportation. The sites below will fill in the picture for you.
Reading Assignment
Visit the U.S. Energy Information Administration's Energy Explained.
- Under “Oil and Petroleum Products” read Refining Crude Oil (all tabs).
- Read “Gasoline” and all subsections.
- Read “Diesel Fuel” and all subsections.
- (Heating Oil section not required.)
Reading/Viewing Assignment
Visit American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers and read "The Refining Process" and watch simulation. Also click through and read "Other Refined Petroleum Products."