where does oil come from and will we run out one day?

Answer 1

Hydrogen and carbon, under high temperatures and pressures found in the mantle during the formation of the Earth, form hydrocarbon molecules which have gradually leaked up to the surface through cracks in rocks. The organic materials which are found in petroleum deposits are easily explained by the metabolism of bacteria which have been found in extreme environments similar to Earth's mantle. These hyperthermophiles, or bacteria which thrive in extreme environments, have been found in hydrothermal vents, at the bottom of volcanoes, and in places where scientists formerly believed life was not possible. The mantle contains vast numbers of these bacteria.

The abiogenic origin of petroleum deposits would explain some phenomena that are not currently understood, such as why petroleum deposits almost always contain biologically inert helium.

The Swedish State Power Board drilled for oil in a rock that had been fractured by an ancient meteorite. It was a good test of his theory because the rock was not sedimentary and would not contain remains of plant or marine life. The drilling was successful, although not enough oil was found to make the field commercially viable.



The world has 1.3 Trillion barrels of proven oil reserves. It is estimated that world could hold as much as 700 billion unproven oil reserves. This includes Canada's oil sands and Iraq's western untapped region.

The World consumes 29 Billion barrels a year and oil consumption grows 2.5% a year on average.

If the estimates are correct and the world only has 2.5 trillion barrels of oil, with 29 billion barrels consumed a year increasing 2.5% year that leaves us with 82 years of oil.

The problem with my figures is that it lulls everyone into thinking, well with 82 years there is no reason to rush.

Source: CIA Fact Book

Answer 2

Petroleum comes from reservoirs deep underground, although there used to be "seeps" close to the surface, which is how we discovered it in the first place. Most people believe it was created over millenia out of plants and other carbon-based items that were buried and heated as the deposit went deeper.

Personally, I prefer the theory that petroleum is a product of the creation of the earth and the bombardments of the earth by comets and other space stuff, rich in hydrocarbons. It is difficult to explain hydrocarbons in vents under the sea otherwise.

Coal clearly was created by plant life, but oil is something else.

In any event, since the stuff is not being created at the rate we are using it, we will run out of it.

Answer 3

We are no where near running out of oil, and to this day, it is still the best and most efficiant fuel available. At the current use of oil, we will not run out for many lifetimes to come. There is no need to worry. Before someone answers a question for you, they should get thier facts straight! We havent even started tapping into some of the most plentiful supplies on the planet.

Answer 4

Oil is found in porous rocks under the earth's surface. To get it out, you need at least a well and a pump. You can't get all of it out from a particular formation, but there are various tricks you can use to get more of it, such as injecting water, steam, or chemicals, or using explosives to fracture the rock.
Oil is also found in tar sands in northern Alberta. It is not as cheap to recover as oil pumped from the ground, but at current prices such oil is competitive. There is a lot of it.
Hydrocarbons from which oil can be made are found in the western United States. It is not yet economical to use these sources (the extraction isn't cheap), but there is a LOT of hydrocarbon there -- enough to last for centuries.
There is not now, and will not be soon, any viable alternative to liquid hydrocarbons for vehicle propulsion. (There has been a lot of interest in hydrogen for such use, but there are serious inherent problems with using it and it ain't gonna happen.) If natural sources named above become too costly, liquid hydrocarbons can be made from coal and natural gas, or from coal and hydrogen (you need a source of really cheap energy to do this).
It is often said that oil was made from animal or plant material early in the earth's history. To me, this seems unlikely -- there is simply too much of it. The earth is known to have had substantial hydrocarbons in its atmosphere in primordial times, and it's my opinion that the present hydrocarbon resources obtain from the early atmosphere.

Answer 5

Oil is fossilised plant matter, from what is called the Carboniferous period. We are in the proccess of running out now.

Answer 6

yes pretty soon we need to look for other alternative past .came from the plant, mud stuck on the ground permented by pressure,heat of the sun.

Answer 7

BCat is right