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By H. D. Wilde

GREAT emphasis is being placed today on petroleum as a source of chemicals. Such prominence is well merited, for rapid strides have been made in developing processes for the conversion of petroleum into synthetic chemical products, which are now being made on a huge scale. These marvelous accomplishments have resulted in some highly optimistic predictions as to what can be expected in the future. Many of these forecasts are well justified, but some writers, especially those contributing to the Sunday supplements and the popular-cience type of publications, have let their imagination run wild and present a rather distorted picture of the possibilities in this field in the postwar period. Commercial manufacture of synthetic organic chemicals had its beginning in England with the establishment of a plant by Sir William Perkin in 1857 for the manufacture of "Aniline Purple" or "Mauve." The preceding year he had discovered in the laboratory how this dyestuff could be made from aniline, one of the many derivatives of coal tar, and he soon made commercial application of his discovery. Influenced largely by his success, organic chemists began research on production of a vast array of synthetic dyestuffs, medicinals, flavors, scents, and explosives. Rapid progress was made and by the turn of the century hundreds of these products were being manufactured. Most of these synthetic chemicals were derived from materials obtained as by-products in the conversion of coal into coke. These by-products are generally referred to as "aromatics" and are obtained by processing coal tar recovered in the coking process, so they are popularly known as "coal-tar chemicals." During the early years of this century, coal-tar chemistry was the wonder of the age, and rightfully so, since the products so made seemed limitless.

Jan 1, 1944

By W. B. Heroy

ONLY through the mineral fuels can large amounts of energy be transported to great dlstances and stored for long periods for future use. Coal has the advantages over oil of greater safety of handling and smaller losses in storage. But oil is, in the present stage of technical advancement, the more economical source of liquid fuel for internal-combustion motors. No method for direct use of coal in such motors has been developed that can compete with petroleum products. The automoblle engine and the airplane motor are designed to make the most effective use of gasoline.

Jan 1, 1944

By Best W. N.

Discussion of the paper of W. N. BEST, presented at the San Francisco meeting, September, 1915, and printed in Bulletin No. 104, August, 1915, pp. 1527 to 1537. WILLIAM A. WILLIAMS, San Francisco, Cal.-I would like to ask whether .Mr. Best ever had any experience with an oil burner that used neither air nor steam? W. N. BEST, New York, N. Y.-Yes. This type is commonly known as the "mechanical spray burner" and uses oil heated under high pressure to above its vaporizing point. These burners are not as efficient as the atomizing type for the following reasons: 1. They produce a round flame which; as with any other type of burner, must pass over a flat surface. A round flame cannot fit a flat surface. 2. They do not evenly distribute the heat, resulting in localized heat. 3. The outlet through which the fuel passes is very small; so all gravities of oil, especially oil containing sand, cannot be burned. 4. Their construction is such that they must be cleaned frequently, as the residuum in the fuel clogs the burner. 5. The oil opening being small, the capacity of each burner is small, so that many burners must be used in a boiler or furnace. (The fewer burners there are, the more accurately they can be regulated.) In marine boilers, these burners are largely used, because they do not require either steam or air for atomization. However, there are other methods by which this objection to other types can be eliminated, such as by the use of a rotary blower and steam turbine engine, the exhaust front the engine passing into the engine condenser, thus obviating loss of water. Mechanical burners are rarely used in shops. I know of but one power plant using them. With mechanical burners, the fuel must be maintained at a high pressure. On board naval vessels, some mechanical burners demand an oil pressure of from 100 to 6001b. It is advisable to reduce the pressure as much as possible, as fractured pipes or fittings are particularly dangerous, for the heated oil escapes as a vapor. In such cases there is liability of an explosion caused by spontaneous combustion.

Jan 12, 1915

By W. N. Best

(San Francisco Meeting, September, 1915) INTRODUCTION CRUDE oil attracted attention because of its excellence as a fuel for open-hearth furnaces; for making crucible steel and brass; for melting copper, lead, tin, zinc, nickel, silver, malleable iron, gray iron; and for the production of steam in all sizes and types of boilers. For heating furnaces, mold-drying ovens, core ovens, ore roasters, calciners, hot-air furnaces, sand drying, asphalt road work, etc., its superiority over other fuels is due to the fact that the heat is at all times under perfect control, so that a constant temperature may be attained and maintained at the will of the operator. This means a maximum amount and uniform quality of work. Crude oil is of two kinds, paraffine base and asphaltum base, and varies from 11 to 46 gravity Baumé. The light-gravity oil does not require heating before use; but oil of less than 20 gravity Baumé should be heated to just below its vaporizing point, in order to reduce its viscosity and to obtain the highest efficiency of combustion. Heavy California oil vaporizes at 230°'F., Mexican crude oil at from 175° to 210° F., and Beaumont, Texas, oil at 142° F. Fuel oil vaporizes at 130° F.

Jan 8, 1915

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Jan 1, 1955

By V. H. Wilhelm

WITH rapidly diminishing oil reserves: a great percentage of which are uneconomical at present prices, some of the existing methods of development and production will have to undergo radical re- visions to meet the changes continually taking place in the petroleum industry. Imagination in an engineer is a great asset. The fancy of today is found to be the realization of tomorrow, and with this thought in mind, there is here presented a more or less imaginative picture which, to my mind, has a meritorious basis. Directed drilling has reached a stage of accuracy sufficient to allow the prediction that this art will be used in the future development of oil structures, especially those \\,it11 thin sand bodies 'and steep dips. Directional drilling in a number of fields in California has gratifying results. Wells which practically laid pipe lines through the oil sands have enjoyed a greater drainage radius with a consequent greater initial and cumulative production. In one field where the vertical thickness of sands was approximately 550 ft., wells drifting at an angle as great as 55 deg. fro111 vertical had over 1100 ft. of perforated pipe in contact with these sands. These wells were, and are, remarkable for their great initial pro-

Jan 1, 1936

Jan 1, 1927

By James Terry Duce

Production of oil in Bahrein for the war years was as follows: YEAR BBL PER YEAR Prior to 1939 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22,287,055 1939 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,588,554 1940 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,073,919 1941 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,794,157 1942 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,240,627 1943 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,571,609 1944 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,713,795 1945 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,308,938 Total to Jan. 1, 1946 . . . . . . . . 70,578,654

Jan 1, 1946

By S. FROES ABRUE

No new oil fields were discovered in Brazil during 1945. Production for the year reached a total of 79.329 bbl., all coming from the four fields in the Baia basin; the Lobato-Joanes field produced 6728 bbl.; Aratu, 6717 bbl.; Candeias, 36,663 bbl. and Itaparica, 29,211 bbl. The total cumulative production from the Baia basin from 1939 to 1945 inclusive amounts to 210,000 bbl., all of which is utilized locally.

Jan 1, 1946

By E. G. Gaylord

A BRIEF review of the oil conditions in California for a few years prior to 1923 is desirable for a clear comprehension of the development during that year and the results of the development. California's oil production during the five years preceding 1922 had been running from 100,000,000 to 115,000,000 bbl. annually. Crude oil stocks in storage had been declining steadily from 1915 to 1919, when there was a slight increase. They continued to decline through practically all of 1920, when they were drawn on to the extent of 11,350,000 bbl., leaving 20,930,000 bbl. on hand. In 1921, with production approximately 10,000,000 bbl. greater than the previous year, crude-oil stocks increased until, at the end of the year, there were 33,289,000 bbl. on hand. It would seem, therefore, that at the end of 1921 the so-called Pacific Coast province could absorb between 100,000,000 and 105,000,000 bbl. of oil per year, any in excess of this amount going into storage, not being, able to compete in other markets with oil outside the state. During 1922, daily production increased from 316,000 bbl. at the beginning of the year, to 500,000, at the end. This increase was the result entirely of production from the new fields, in the Los Angeles basin. In fact, considerable oil from the older fields of the state was shut-in beginning with March, 1922. As of 1922, the past development of the oil industry of California had been, in a general way, quite regular. As the need grew for more oil, pioneer drilling was increased, resulting in the discovery of new fields here and there. The good prices for crude oil that prevailed during the later part of the War and into 1921 had stimulated an extensive wildcatting campaign by California's larger oil corporations, as well as by smaller independent oil companies and by individuals. Many wildcat wells in California have required, two or three years for their completion, consequently the intensive wildcatting, which might be said to have started in California in 1917 and continued into 1922, found its greatest results with, the discovery of three very productive fields which, for all practical purposes, might as well have come in simultaneously.

Jan 3, 1924

By R. R. Templeton

THE year 1924 was particularly notable in the petroleum industry of California as it was a period in which extensive town-lot drilling, with attendant overproduction and allied problems, virtually ceased and the industry returned to a nearly normal condition. Nearly all major field operations were conducted by large operating and marketing companies; in contrast to 1922 and 1923 field operations, when small promotion companies set the pace and forced the large companies to follow. The outstanding features of petroleum development were: 1. The three major fields of 1923, namely Huntington Beach, Long Beach, and Santa Fe Springs, declined from a production of 13,042,939 bbl., in January, to 6,764,417 bbl., in December, a drop of nearly 52 per cent: During this period, Huntington Beach declined 35 per cent., Long Beach 42 per cent., and Santa Fe Springs 63 per cent. 2. Methods of pumping deep wells were improved in some particulars; this contributed toward sustaining the productions of these three famous fields above what was predicted. 3. Of the fields producing previous to 1924, only three increased in production to any appreciable degree, during the year, as the result of bringing in new wells. These fields are Dominguez, Torrance, and Wheeler Ridge. Dominguez, discovered in September, 1923, produced 56,851 bbl. in January and increased regularly to a production of 1,641,042 bbl. in December. Torrance increased from a production of 972,261 bbl. in January, to 1,783,670 bbl., in May, and then declined to 1,393,215 bbl. in December. Wheeler Ridge, discovered in January, 1923, produced 23,254 bbl., in January, 1924, increased to a high of 33,678 bbl., in September, and declined to 27,430 bbl. in December. 4. Nearly all the production that had been shut-in during 1923 was opened in 1924, except some wells chiefly in Coalinga, Fullerton, and Santa Maria districts. The opening up of this shut-in production, combined with the increased productions from Dominguez and Torrance, were the chief factors that held the rate of decline for the state to a gentle slope.

Jan 7, 1925

By Gail Moulton

THE oilfields in Illinois are located principally along the LaSalle anticline in the southeastern part of the state. The oil produced comes most largely from beds of Pennsylvanian and Mississippian age, but there is an increasing important production from deeper horizons, as will be noted under new development. The oil is largely of paraffin base, and has an average specific gravity of about 35° Baume. The rank of Illinois as an oil producer has dropped from third since 1913, when its production was exceeded only by that of California and Oklahoma, to eighth in 1923. This has been the result of failure to find new pools of considerable size to offset the declining production of the old wells and of the greatly increased production of some of the other states. The noteworthy features of petroleum production in Illinois during 1924 are: the low rate of decline for the state as a whole; the smaller percentage of dry holes; and the larger average initial yield of the new wells.

Jan 3, 1925

By Gail Moulton

THE oilfields in Illinois are located principally along the LaSalle anti-cline in the southeastern part of the state. The oil produced comes most largely from beds of Pennsylvanian and Mississippian age, but there is an increasing important production from deeper horizons, as will be noted under new development. The oil is largely of paraffine base, and has an average specific gravity of about 35° Baume. The rank of Illinois as an oil producer has dropped from third since 1913, when its production was exceeded only by that of California and Oklahoma, to eighth in 1923. This has been the result of failure to find new pools of considerable size to offset the declining production of the old wells and of the greatly increased production of some of the other states. The noteworthy features of petroleum production in Illinois during 1924 are: the low rate of decline for the state as a whole; the smaller percentage of dry holes; and the larger average initial yield of the new wells.

Jan 3, 1925