Crude Oil Distillation

Gasoline and diesel, like various other products (e.g., cosmetics, paints, nylon, and asphalt), come from crude oil. Crude oil, a fossil fuel, is a nonrenewable energy resource. Examples of nonrenewable energy resources are coal, oil, and natural gas. They formed from the remains of sea plants and animals that lived hundreds of millions of years ago. Under current production and consumption rates, experts project oil to last 50-100 years. The exact time frame is uncertain. How long oil lasts will depend on future discoveries, technological advancements, global use, actual supply, and price. Crude oil goes through a distillation process (i.e., separating and vaporizing) at a refinery to form gasoline and diesel. At different temperatures of the distillation process various products are collected.