2006-12-03 13:31:17 · 12 answers · asked by Saif 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Engineering
petroleum is oil or fossil fuel that has spent eons of years forming,and is found in the earth. for more info-
http://personal.psu.edu/student/j/m/jmdooi/mywebs/what_is_petroleum.htm
2006-12-03 13:38:28 · answer #1 · answered by joe 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Petroleum is a combination of two Latin words Petros and oleum, petros means rock and oleum means oil.
The exact composition of petroleum is hard to explain but it is a mixture of hydrocarbons like butane heptane etc.
By the process of distillation the crude oil is filtered and divided into its constituent hydrocarbons.
Depending on the combustion capabilities the different hydrocarbons have differ ant usage.
2006-12-03 13:41:49 · answer #2 · answered by Ramanadhan C 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
petroleum is another name for crude oil...which is an organic compound composed of hydrocarbons. these hydrocarbons are formed from decaying plant matter, not dinosaurs like many people seem to think. yes they are called fossil fuels, but if it were made of dinosurs decomposing, we wuld find dinosaur bones in the oils pockets and not buried in the dirt. theres is also a new theory out that oil is a byproduct of colonies of microorganisms that eat rock and go dorment when a certain pressure is reached in the oil cavity, and is supported by the recent findings of slow replenishment in depleted oil wells....so maybee the books are about to be rewritten again
2006-12-03 13:49:59 · answer #3 · answered by Kent H 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I believe it is a by product of producing oil into fuel. It is found below the ground naturally, but gets produced in bulk in the refining process
2006-12-03 13:36:32 · answer #4 · answered by Rhea B 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
An assortment of hydrocarbons of varying length and a few impurities.
2006-12-03 13:39:14 · answer #5 · answered by Scooter_MacGyver 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Oil that is collected underground. It's made from dinosuar remnaints and things like that.
2006-12-03 13:32:51 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
it's a mix if hydrocarbons, gasoline, kerosene, tar, octane, butane,hexane,it's what makes the world go round, for the time being.
2006-12-03 15:00:11 · answer #7 · answered by IHTFP 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it is a substance used to make different kinds of oils or jellies like vaseline.
2006-12-03 13:33:42 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is also called "crude oil" and is like black stuff oil like. It is hard to explain kind of but it is like oil.
2006-12-03 13:33:23 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is a hydrocarbon.
2006-12-03 13:33:23 · answer #10 · answered by aminnyus 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋