Most scientists believe that oil was formed from prehistoric marine life and vegetation. As the earth aged, this life and surrounding mud was buried under layers of rocks and dirt. As these layers compressed downward, they began to heat. After centuries of being under pressure and heat, this once marine life and vegetation slowly transformed into the substance we call oil. (Petroleum). We only have a certain amount of oil, and in order to get this oil out of the ground for our use, we have to put energy into retrieving it. It is important to compare the amount of energy we put into the process against the amount of “energy”(in the form of oil) we get out of the process. If more energy is spent than is produced, then there is going to be an oil peak.
In mathematics, the amount of oil that is produced every year can be measured using what is called a logistic function. There are some scientists who disagree with the theory of how quickly oil forms and they believe that the proper projection of producible oil takes the form of exponential growth, a graph that is continuously growing. This group believes that oil production shall never top out. Their opinion is an extremely optimistic one. A more realistic projection is that the growth in oil production can be shown using a logistics curve. Given the numerous theories about resource availability and limitations, how can we know whether or not the oil supply will reach a peak and, if so, when can we expect this to occur?
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The first oil obtained by drilling was by the Chinese in the early 4th Century. The Chinese used the oil to separate salt from salt water Modern oil production began in 1853. At that time, no one was concerned about the oil supply ever running out. The first thou...
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...each a peak and, if so, when can we expect this to occur?” It is impossible because we don’t have a reliable source for the amount of obtainable oil left in the earth.
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Citation
Campbell, Colin J and Jean H. Laherrere. “The End of Cheap Oil.” Scientific American March 1998.
Hubbert Curve. 3 Aug 2005. Wikipedia. 2 Aug 2005.
Hubbert Peak. 3 Aug 2005. Wikipedia. 2 Aug 2005.
Logistic Function. 3 Aug 2005. Wikipedia. 2 Aug 2005.
M. King Hubbert. 3 Aug 2005. Wikipedia. 2 Aug 2005.
Petroleum. 3 Aug 2005. Wikipedia. 2 Aug 2005
Reynolds Daniel E. The Origins of Oil and Petroleum. 29 Jul 1996. Letter of the Month.
The economic and technological development since the twentieth century has been fuelled mainly by oil, just as the early industrial revolution of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries has been fuelled by coal. ...
Petroleum seepages, in some form or another have been around since ancient times for boat caulking, road mending, and as medicine, however, the modern petroleum industry was truly born with the first drilled oil well in August 1859 by Edwin L. Drake at Titusville, PA. (Laudon, 347) At first, in the United States, oil production was controlled by small operators but by the late 1870's John D. Rockfeller had purchased most of the nation's refineries-controlling the United States industry. The Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1911 split Rockfeller's Standard Oil Trust into three smaller companies; today they are known as Mobil, Chevron, and Exxon. (Lynch, 214) Since that time, oil has become a major part of everyone's way of life. Oil is used to provide fuel for automobiles, tractors, trucks, aircraft and ships. Petroleum products are the basic materials used for the manufacture of synthetic fibers for clothing and in plastics, paints, fertilizers, insecticides, soaps, and synthetic rubber etc... (Lynch, 207) Due to this demand, companies are constantly searching for more oil deposits.
Pratt, Joseph A. “Exxon and the Control of Oil.” Journal of American History. 99.1 (2012): 145-154. Academic search elite. Web. 26. Jan. 2014.
Campbell, Colin J., Laherrere, Jean H. "The End Of Cheap Oil." Scientific American Mar. 1998: 78-83.
“We are too busy to stop and think about the daily consumption of oil and gas, but almost everything we use or do has been produced using petroleum.” (Menezes,2014). Not many can understand that you can almost take anything you use in an everyday life and trace it back to petroleum oil. It is a huge commodity and sometimes I would believe that it can be just as important as water.
“Do we have enough oil worldwide to meet our future needs?” U.S. Energy Information Administration, 12 April 2011, web, 24 August 2011
" Oil is the life blood of our modern industrial society. It fuels the machines and lubricates the wheels of the world’s production. But when that vital resource is out of control, it can destroy marine life and devastate the environment and economy of an entire region…. The plain facts are that the technology of oil-- its extraction, its transport, its refinery and use-- has outpaced laws to control that technology and prevent oil from polluting the environment…" (Max, 1969). Oil in its many forms has become one of the necessities of modern industrial life. Under control, and serving its intended purpose, oil is efficient, versatile, and productive. On the other hand, when oil becomes out of control, it can be one of the most devastating substances in the environment. When spilled in water, it spreads for miles around leaving a black memory behind (Stanley, 1969).
Ross M. Does Oil Hinder Democracy? // World Politics. 2001. Vol. 53, No 3. P. 325—361.
Many early discoveries of oil have been noted in our history. Early settlers of the 16th
In summary, it has been proven that it is possible or the world to run out of oil. This would be followed by several negative effects, especially on the economy of the world. The oil-dependent nations would experience an economic crisis while the globe would realize adverse environmental effects from the alternative energy sources. Inefficiency and unreliability within some of the major sectors such as the transportation industry would also be evident.
Mast, Tom R. Over a Barrel: A Simple Guide to the Oil Shortage. Austin: Hayden, 2005. Print.
Oil is an essential resource in the whole world. People use oil in a variety of ways. The world has used oil for many years and it will still use it as a basic commodity. Oil use can be traced back to 1850s. However, when Edwin Drake produced commercially usable quantities of crude oil from a 69-foot well in Pennsylvania in 1859, he marked a new period that considered oil as a valuable commodity. Oil prices have been inconsistent since 1859. The discoveries of more wells considerably lowered oil prices and made some oil barons abandon the industry. However, oil prices have increased over time because of several factors.
East oil seeped through the ground and it was used in many ways. It was
The importance of oil to the modern world is unique in character and far-reaching in scope. It is a singularly autonomous variable in the world economy and it is used inter alia for transportation, heating and production.
The remains of tiny organisms that live in the sea are trapped with the sands and silts that settle to the bottom in sea basins. These deposits become the source rocks for the generation of crude oil. The process began many millions of years ago with the development of abundant life, and it continues to this day. The sediments grow thicker and sink into the seafloor under their own weight. As additional deposits pile up, the pressure on the ones below increases several thousand times, and the temperature rises by several hundred degrees. The mud and sand harden into shale and sandstone and the remains of the dead organisms are transformed into crude oil and natural gas. Surface deposits of crude oil have been known to humans for thousands of years. In the areas where they occurred, they were long used for limited purposes, such as caulking boats, waterproofing cloth, and fueling torches. By the time the Renaissance began in the 14th century, some surface deposits were being distilled to obtain lubricants and medicinal products, but the real exploitation of crude oil did not begin until the 19th century. The Industrial Revolution had by then brought about a search for new fuels, and the social changes it effected had produced a need for good, cheap oil for lamps; people wished to be able to work and read after dark. Once petroleum forms, it flows upward in Earth’s crust because it has a lower density than the brines that saturate the interstices of the sands and carbonate rocks that constitute the crust of Earth. The crude oil and natural gas rise into the pores of the coarser sediments lying above. For several years people had known that wells drilled for water and salt were occasionally infiltrated by petroleum, so the concept of drilling for crude oil itself soon followed.