ITS HISToRY * USES AND TESTS EoRGE THoPIPSoN WALKER PETROLEUM ITS HISTORY, OCCURRENCE, PRODUCTION. USES an d TESTS. By GEO. T. WALKER, A. B. Member of the American Chemical Society. Chief Chemist for The Van Tilbi * Co. ILLUSTRATED Price $1-00 MINNEAPOLIS IMPERIAL PRINTING COMPANY 1915 T Copyright, 1915. THE. VAN T1LBURG OIL COMPANY Published December, 1915 CONTENTS Chapter Page Introductory 1 T. Origin and Occurrence of Petroleum ... 3 II. History of Petroleum 10 III. Production and Transportation of Pe- troleum 16 IV. Testing Petroleum Products 27 V. Refining Crude Petroleum 30 VI. Petroleum Products and Their Uses. . 36 Bibliography 40 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Page American Valveless Diesel Engine . . .Frontispiece Diagram of Anticline and Syncline 4 55,000 Barrel Tank on Fire 5 The Boynton Field, Okla,, Mar. 7, 1914 6 The Boynton Field, Okla., Aug. 20, 1915 7 Crude Oil Stills 14 Diagram of Oil Derrick 18 Big Gusher in the Caddo, La., Field 22 Vendor of Oil Cans, Constantinople 23 Oil Wells in a Bayou, Louisiana 26 Oil Wells in the Ocean 34 Producing Casing Head Gasoline 40 Oil Wells on the Cimarron River, Oklahoma . . 42 Oil Well at Katalla, Alaska. . . 44 349284 PREFACE. There are few articles so generally used as petroleum, con- cerning which the general public has so little information. The average man or woman uses some of these products daily in fact, modern civilization would be almost impossible without them, but very few know anything about their production and proper uses. How many know why there are different grades of gasolines, or kerosenes, of lubricating oils, etc., and have any idea which grade to buy for their special purpose? This little book is intended to give real information concern- ing some of these matters and to give this information within a small compass, so that those who read it will not be discour- aged by the prospect of wading through a large volume filled with statistics and tables. It is hoped that the book will be readily understood by young people of high school age, and yet not too childish to prove of value to those of more mature age, who have never known much about the modern petroleum industry. Those who wish to go further into this interesting subject are referred to the bibliography given at the back of this book. Great care has been used to prevent errors, but doubtless some have occurred, and the author would greatly appreciate it if his readers would notify him of any errors they may no- tice, so that they may be corrected in a future edition. G. T. W. Minneapolis, December 20, 1915. INTRODUCTORY. To realize more fully the importance of petroleum to modern civilization, let us consider for a moment what would happen if we were to remove all petroleum products from the world. Practically all of the rural districts would be left in darkness throughout the night; all the work now done by gasoline en- gines would cease, nearly all automobiles would be worthless; practically all machinery would stop for lack of lubrication, many of the modern battleships would be without means of propulsion; Rocky Mountain railroads could not operate; the present great war itself would be entirely changed, for the lack of petroleum products would do away with the aeroplane, the Zeppelin, the automobile, and auto truck, the motorcycle, and even the submarine; in fact, temporarily the world would be almost completely paralyzed. And what would serve as substitutes for these products? Un- til some better means was found for distributing electricity in thinly settled districts, the average country household would be thrown back on the tallow dips of our grandfathers (the modern candles would disappear for they are made of paraffine wax). Steam engines would replace the larger gasoline en- gines but could never take the place of the smaller ones, only manual labor could replace them. For lubricants we would have to fall back on animal and vegetable oils and fats, expensive and unsatisfactory. High pressure steam engines could not be run at all for petroleum furnishes the only satisfactory lubricant for them. True, auto- mobiles, gasoline engines', etc., can be run on denatured alcohol or on coal tar products, but these are high-priced, denatured alcohol depends for its production on agriculture, and coal tar products are merely by-products which are not even now pro- PETROLEUM duced in 'sufficient quantity to meet the demand for use in the manufacture of explosives, dyes and drugs. All of the possible substitutes for petroleum products are even now two or three times as expensive, they are practically all products of agriculture in one form or another and the ne- cessity of turning so many of these products into other chan- nels would greatly increase the cost of foods. The United States exports annually over 1,000,000,000 gallons of kerosene alone. This enormous quantity represents only the excess pro- duced over requirements for domestic consumption. Imagine the enormous number of cattle required to yield tallow enough to replace this one item. Where would we raise them and what would we feed them? The world would drop back to the old fashioned ways and our promising youths would again have to study by fire light as Lincoln did. It is almost possible to de- termine the degree of education prevalent in a country by not- ing the amount of kerosene used per capita, as shown in the table below : PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION OF KEROSENE DURING 1911. (Compiled by Sir Boverton Redwood). GALLONS United States 7.3 Rouinania 1.8 Canada 4.0 Austria 1.8 * England 3.9 Japan 1.6 * Germany 3.6 Brazil 1.2 Australia 3.4 Italy 1.0 France 2.5 Mexico .7 Russia 2.0 India .6 South Africa 2.0 Spain .5 Egypt 1.9 China .4 Petroleum ranks second in value of all our mineral products, being exceeded in value by iron alone. The United States pro- duces more than all the other countries of the world combined. Certainly then it behooves each of us to have some general in- formation concerning this product. *The figures for some of the more thickly populated countries would be considerably increased if the population of all cities having lighting systems were to be deducted before determining per capita consumption. CHAPTER I. ORIGIN AND OCCURRENCE OF PETROLEUM. Petroleum (from the Greek petros, rock and oleum, oil) also known as rock oil, earth oil, or mineral oil, occurs very widely distributed throughout the world, and is evidently the product of strata of widely separated geological periods. There has been a great deal of controversy regarding the origin of petroleum. Some of the highest authorities claim that it is produced by tfre action of water on metallic carbides which they assume to be present in large quantities far below the earth's surface. The simplest illustration of such a reac- tion is the preparation of acetylene gas from calcium carbide and water. Chemists have actually produced products closely resembling petroleum by the action of water on mixed carbides, but this theory, however attractive, is too fanciful for general acceptance. The more commonly accepted theory attributes petroleum to large deposits of organic matter which have been subjected to the action of water, or steam under tremendous pressure, at an elevated temperature, through long periods of time. Whether this organic-matter was of animal or vegetable origin is still a question. However, one of the most plausible theories would have us believe that the petroleum found in the Eastern part of the United States is of vegetable origin while the crude oils found in the central and western portions are almost certainly of animal, or mixed animal and vegetable origin. It is almost necessary to adopt some such theory to account for the presence of considerable amounts of sulphur and large amounts of nitro- gen compounds in some of these oils. These sulphur and nitro- gen compounds closely resemble compounds 1 which can actually be produced in the laboratory by destructive distillation of vari- ous kinds of animal matter but could scarcely be accounted for by any theory which attributes all petroleum to a purely vege- table origin. In the early days of the petroleum industry, it was generally considered that the oil occurred in crevices and cavities in the rocks, so that there were actual rivers and lakes of oil. This theory was supposed to explain the fact that an abundant sup- ply of oil might be struck in one well and little or none in an- other one only a short distance away. It is, however, very well PETROLEUM ORIGIN AND OCCURRENCE known that under the tremendous pressure which would exist at a depth of several hundred feet, there could be no large cavi- ties, for the rock under these conditions would gradually fill in any crevices which might be formed. So tremendous is the pressure that most rocks are in a plastic form and could a large cavity be produced, it would very shortly be filled in by the rock surrounding it. Petroleum and natural gas deposits always occur below an impervious layer which is generally a shale. Wherever a porous limestone, sandstone or conglomnierate occur, just below such a layer of shale, gas or oil or both are very apt to be found. These rocks are sufficiently porous to hold anywhere from one- tenth to one-fifth of their volume of oil, and even if they held only one-tenth, this would account for even the very largest yields of petroleum without any necessity of imagining enor- mous lakes of oil. Even though at present we do not believe that the oil exists in cavities, oil fields are still frequently spoken of as "pools." Courtesy of the National Petroleum News A 55,000 Barrel Tank on Fire Of course, when they were originally deposited, the layers of sandstone or other porous rock were horizontal, but as the earth's crust has cooled and contracted, this horizontal layer has formed folds more or less pronounced. These folds in places have given rise to mountain ranges, but throughout the greater part of the world, there may be only a few feet between G PETROLEUM J the top and bottom of one of these rises. The top of the fold is called an anticline and the trough between is called a syn- cline. As the oil rises through the porous rock, it naturally ac- cumulates in the anticline. Generally salt water occurs in con- nection with petroleum deposits and, of course, the petroleum , being lighter, accumulates in a layer above the water. When- ever gas is present, it will be found under great pressure in a layer above the oil. By referring to the accompanying diagram, it is easy to see how wells comparatively close together may strike either oil, gas, or water. It is also easy to see why wells drilled even in streams or lakes, may strike oil just as well as those drilled on the tops of the hills, for it would be very sel- dom that the valleys on the surface would follow the same lines as these valleys or troughs several hundred feet below the sur- face. R16JS: QKUVfQMA Y///. SAoto of Oil \ rA Xecwcv* secured later Dry hole \JYTar ^ J9J4. & by Jnerntt Oil Co JRty Fee purchased later T>remlphide. Until these processes were devised, the Ohio crudes could scarcely be used for producing illuminating oils. Black Oil is produced by practically the same process as cylinder stocks but from a cheaper grade of crude oil and with a good deal less care. Mid-Continent crude oils which come from the Kansas and Oklahoma fields, generally contain asphal- tum, with or without paraffine w T ax. These oils with an asphal- tum base do not yield satisfactory cylinder stocks since asphal- tum is not a gOQd lubricant. The residue left in the still after driving off lubricating oil and wax is a thick tarry liquid which is largely used in the manufacture of paving materials and oils for treating roads. When this asphaltum is oxidized by blowing air through it, it forms a rubbery substance or when the oxidation is pushed further, we get a brittle solid resmbling I coal tar pitch. The Texas Crude Oil does not contain paraffine wax and does not furnish cylinder stock. However, the general distilling PETROLEUM processes are similar for all grades of crude oil. The gravities of the different distillates vary with the crude oil used. Petrolatum, commonly sold under the trade name of "vase- line", is produced by filtering cylinder stocks from carefully selected crude oils. This filtering can be carried to a point which will yield a perfectly white product. The melting points are raised by adding refined paraffine wax. The white mineral oils which have become so popular lately for medicinal use are simply viscous neutrals which have been filtered until all color and' odor is removed. In the early days of oil refining, kerosene was the most valu- able product and every effort was made to increase the yield. It was for this reason that the cracking process referred to, was used so extensively. However, with the introduction of the gasoline engine, gasoline became more valuable and a great Courtesy of Robert B. Moran. Oil Wells Drilled in the Bed of the Ocean in the Summerland Field California. many processes were patented for increasing the yield of gaso- line. Most of these are based on distillation at a high tempera- ture and considerable pressure. The process used by The Standard Oil Company for producing their motor spirits, is based on this principle. Another somewhat similar process is the new Rittman method w T hich has been worked out by govern- ment scientists and is now being tried out on a large scale. It is claimed that this process can be arranged either to pro- duce considerable percentages' of hydro-carbons of the coal tar series, or the regular paraffine hydro-carbons such as occur in the light distillates of Pennsylvania kerosene. In either case these hydro-.carbons are produced by some decomposition of the higher boiling constituents of the oil. Still another process consists in the addition of aluminum REFINING 35 chloride to the contents of the still. It is claimed that by this process hydrogen is abstracted from the higher boiling con- stituents and caused to combine with hydro-carbons contain- ining a smaller percentage of hydrogen thus producing paraf- fine hydro-carbons and leaving a deposit of coke. Hundreds of other "processes have been patented, for this purpose, but have not proved practical. There are certain characteristics of the different crude oils which appear throughout all their products and make it pos- sible generally to determine from what crude any particular oil was produced. Starting in the eastern part of the United States, we find that the products of Pennsylvania crude are characterized by their high gravity, high flash and fire test, and high cold test, with only a moderate viscosity. The best Penn- sylvania lubricating oils will have a viscosity of from 200 to 240. The gravities will run from 30 to 32 B, decreasing as the viscosity increases. The flash test would be about 415, fire test about 480, cold test 20 F. above zero. These oils can be readily produced in No. 2 and No. 3 colors. The oils from the central states run much lower in gravity, from 23 to 25 B, the viscosities running from 200 to 400 F. The colors are much darker, these being the popular "red oils." The oils from the Mid-Continent field ( Kansas and Oklahoma ) have gravities of from 25 to 26 B. ; viscosities from 200 to 325; flash test is about 410, fire test 470. The colors will vary from No. 2 for the thinner oils to No. 5 for the thick oils, cold test is about 10 above zero. The Texas oils are characterized by their high viscosities, running up as high as 3,000. At the same time, they have a low cold test, about 5 below zero, gravity 19 to 20 B, flash about 390, fire test about 450. Another distinction lies in the difference in the bloom or fluoresence of the oil. The Pennsylvania and other central state oils, have a greenish bloom. Those from the Mid-Continent field are slightly bluish while the Texas oils have a decidedly blue bloom. The Russian oils, as has already been mentioned, are of a decidedly different character from the American oils. They are characterized by very low cold tests and high viscosities. These high viscosity oils can be produced in very light colors. Some of the best are perfectly colorless and tasteless and yet almost as thick as glycerine. Of course the gasolines and kerosenes do not show differences in color, nor can they be judged by the viscosity, but it is a fact that a 70 to 72 Pennsylvania gasoline has practically the same distilling temperature and the same rate of evaporation as a 68 Mid-Continent gasoline and the high grade 49 Pennsylva- nia kerosene is equaled if not exceeded in quality by the 46 Mid-Continent kerosene. In the same manner, an eastern ben- zine or naptha has a gravity of 58 to 60, while the Mid-Conti- nent product of the same quality has a gravity of 53 to 55. CHAPTER VI. PETROLEUM PRODUCTS AND THEIR USES. Natural gas furnishes one of the most desirable fuels known. It is largely used in melting iron and manufacturing steel; also in burning cement and for all purposes where a clean ashless fuel is desired. It can be piped for long distances so that whenever a good natural gas field is discovered, arrange- ments are soon made to carry it to some large manufacturing city where there will be plenty of use for it. In many places it is piped throughout the cities and used for illuminating and domestic purposes also. In the early days of the petroleum industry, enormous amounts of gas were wasted. In many cases street lights were allowed to burn all of the time since it was considered cheaper to do this than to pay someone to turn them off. A great deal of gas is still wasted at times in new fields for lack of pipe lines, to carry the gas to market. In some cases after giving gas for some time, wells will yield oil, so the gas may be al- lowed to escape in the hope that this will occur. Crude petroleum from some sources is used as a natural lu- bricant, but very few wells yield a crude oil which is satisfac- tory for this purpose without refining. Beaumont crude oil from Texas has been largely used in dipping cattle for Texas fever. Crude oil is also considerably used as a hog dip. Many people have a strong belief that it is valuable as a preventative of baldness and many efforts have been made to put it up in a popular form by disguising the odor, but no very great market has been developed. In fact, Kier probably had more success in selling crude petroleum for medicinal purposes, than any of his successors. Until recent years 86 gasoline was commonly sold as lamp gasoline. This product was produced from Pennsylvania petro- leum, but only obtained in small amounts. It is extremely vola- tile and when properly distilled leaves no oily residue. Some of it when re-distilled and carefully refined is put out as petro- leum spirit or petroleum ether which is used as a solvent in place of ether or chloroform, also in the extraction of some per- fume oils. Petroleum ether is valuable for these purposes be- cause it can be completely evaporated at a low temperature and 36 PRODUCTS does not leave a trace of odor. At one time it was customary to prepare an even more volatile product which was used for cooling purposes since it produced a low temperature by evapo- ration, very much as can be done with ether. Within the past 'few years it has been found possible to produce, from natural gas, a product similar to this 86 gasoline. This is accomplished by subjecting the gas to great pressure and low temperature. At first this process was applied particularly to the gas pro- duced from wells which were pumped, since the gas produced under several inches of vacuum would naturally contain some of the low boiling ingredients of the petroleum from which the gas was evolved. It is very natural, as gas escapes from petro- leum, that it should carry with it a small amount of all of the volatile ingredients. Of course, those most volatile will be pres- ent in large amounts and the higher boiling ingredients in smaller proportions. The gasoline produced by this process may have a gravity as high as 100 B. and when placed in a closed container will develop a great deal of pressure, since the process liquifies substances which are naturally gaseous at the ordinary temperature. For this reason when poured out in an open vessel, a violent effervescence occurs, very much the same as that produced when a bottle of pop is poured out into a glass. Gasoline having this characteristic is said to be "wild." Effervescence, of course, is due to the escape of the gas produced from these low boiling in- gredients ; also to the fa,ct that pressure has charged the liquid with uncondensable gases which escape as soon as the pressure is removed. In order to make the product safe to ship, it is necessary to let it stand for some time in tanks, so that the gas may escape. This process is known as "weathering." The weathered product is sold as "casing head" or "natural gas" gasoline. While this is very volatile, at the same time it con- tains some higher boiling ingredients, so that when equal amounts of this product and of a gasoline distilled from crude petroleum are allowed to stand in open dishes, it will be found that although the natural gas gasoline evaporates faster at first, it will leave an oily residue which will not evaporate, until long after the straight run product has entirely disappeared. The product is generally used for mixing with lower gravity gasolines, and of course imparts to them some of this oiliness, so that they are no longer "dry." (This term does not refer to the absence of moisture, but to the fact that a gasoline evapo- rates rapidly and leaves no oily stain). At first a great deal of dissatisfaction and many complaints were produced by efforts to use the product, but recently it has become customary to re-distill it and by this means a product of about 75 gravity can be produced from western gas, which is equally as 1 satis- factory for lamp gasoline as the 86 eastern straight run gaso- line. Distillation gives the only satisfactory means of testing 38 PETROLEUM these products. It will be found that a high grade re-distilled article will have an end point of about 275 F. The gasoline ordinarily sold as a high grade automobile gaso- line, will have a gravity of TO to 72 if produced from Pennsyl- vania crude, or 68 to 70, if produced from Mid-Continent crude. Distillation will show that the western product is really more readily volatilized than the eastern, since it will have an end point of about 325 while the eastern will often leave 2 or 3% of residue at 350 F. A product of similar gravity, of course, can be produced by mixing naptha or benzine with natural gas gasoline. These mixed products are known as "blended gaso- line." They yield gas 1 more readily than the straight run of the same gravity but will not entirely evaporate so quickly. When stored in tanks where the gas can evaporate, there will be a greater percentage of evaporation from the blended product in warm weather. Otherwise it is equally as satisfactory and in cold weather perhaps more satisfactory for automobile use than the straight run goods, provided the products used in blending are dry. The ordinary stove gasoline will have ii gravity of anywhere from 60 to 65, when produced from Pennsylvania crude, or 58 to 60 from Mid-Continent crude. On distillation, these prod- ucts, when well made, Avill leave about 3^^ residue above 350 F. The uses of gasoline are so well known, that it is scarcely necessary to enumerate them. A few of the uses are, for automobiles, gasoline engines of all kinds, aeroplanes, gaso- line launches and boats, in fact, for running nearly any kind of small machinery where electric power is not available. It is also used for cooking and lighting purposes. Benzine or naptha from Pennsylvania crude, has a gravity of 58 to 60, from Mid-Continent, 53 to 55. On distillation these products will leave about the same amount of residue above 3*50 as that from stove gasoline, but it will be found that the greater part of the distillate is between 200 and 300 whereas, the lighter gravity products give a much larger percentage be- low 200. Benzine is the product commonly used by dry clean- ers and is also largely used in the manufacture of varnishes and paints, when it is more commonly referred to as "painters' naptha." It is also used as a solvent for extracting various kinds of oils from waste products or from crushed seeds. For instance, a low grade olive oil is produced by extracting the crushed seeds with naptha after as much oil as possible has been removed by pressure. The same thing is done in the case of cocoanut oil, corn oil and many others. The naptha is removed by heat and blowing air or steam through the oil. Naptha is also used in some processes for extracting rosin and turpentine from sawdust and other wood waste. Turpentine substitute may be considered to be either a very high boiling benzine or a very volatile kerosene. It has a flash PRODUCTS 39 test at least as high as 105 and vet will evaporate completely leaving no oily residue. As its name indicates, it is largely used as a substitute for turpentine in the manufacture of paints, varnishes, shoe polish, etc.; also as a general solvent wherever its high boiling point is not objectionable. From Pennsylvania crude, it is customary to produce kero- senes of about 49 and 45 gravities. The high gravity product has generally been considered the best grade of kerosene it is possible to produce. However, the 46 gravity kerosene, manu- factured from Mid-Continent Crude, will generally prove at least as good and oftentimes better, although it is slightly cheaper.* From the Mid-Continent Crude, one or two lower grades are produced also; the second grade will have about 42 gravity and the third, 40 to 41 gravity. Just as we have found to be the case with gasolines from different crudes, it will be found that the 46 western kerosene is more volatile than the 49 eastern. This can be shown by distillation tests. It will be found that the 49 eastern kerosene will give perhaps 5% of distillate below 280 and leave a 4 or % c / c residue above 570, while the range of the 4C> western will be between 300 and 500. It has been the custom to judge kerosene by gravity just as has been done with gasoline. It will readily be seen from the conditions mentioned, that the method is no more reliable for kerosene than for gasoline, for a 46 western kerosene would 'be far superior to the same gravity from eastern crude and at least equal to the 49 gravity. For this reason state inspection laws which require the inspector to determine the gravity, fur- nish very little protection to the consumer. The only correct way to determine the quality of kerosene is to actually burn it, using a clean lamp, new wick, and clean chimney. By apply- ing this test, it does not take an expert to tell the difference. High grade kerosene whether eastern or western, will leave the chimney practically clean, and the wick will show only a slight charring even if the kerosene is allowed to burn out dry, where- as, with poor grades of kerosene, the chimney will be badly fogged or frosted and the wick will be found heavily crusted. These tests can be brought out even more strongly by repeating the tests several times with the same wick. It will soon be found that in using poor kerosene it is impossible to get satisfac- tory results unless the wick is changed very frequently. As this is not the common custom, it is easy to see why so much kero- sene gives such unsatisfactor}^ results. Many states require inspection to determine either the flash or fire point of kerosene. This requirement dates from the time when gasoline was prac- tically unsaleable and every effort was made to increase the yield of kerosene. It was natural enough that some manufac- turers in doing this would put in enough gasoline or benzine to * References to comparative cost of production frpm Pennsylvania and Mid-Continent Crudes are of course based on costs at the refinery. For eastern localities, the great difference in freight rates may reverse the figures. 40 PETROLEUM produce a very low flash test and it was necessary then to have the goods tested in order to determine whether or not they had a safe flash or fire point, but for many years gasoline has been far more expensive than kerosene and the refiners efforts are devoted to increasing the yield of gasoline at the expense of kerosene, so that it would be practically impossible to buy any kerosene which would show an unsafe flash or fire test. On account of the emphasis which has been placed on the fire test, many make the mistake of judging the quality of the kerosene by the fire test, considering that the higher the fire test the bet- ter the goods. The reverse is the truth, that is, the higher grav- ity kerosenes have the lower flash tests, while the low gravity, poor products, have high fire and flash tests. Mineral Seal Oil, also known as Mineral Colza or Mineral Courtesy of the National Petroleui Machinery Used in Producing Casing Head Gasoline at Glenpool, Oklahoma, Sperm, has a fire test of 300 and is used in some cases for man- ufacturing signal oil, or wherever a very high test illuminating oil is required. Engine distillate largely used in kerosene tractors, is prac- tically, a very low grade of unrefined kerosene. Gas oil, as its name implies, is largely used by gas plants to impart illuminating qualities to gas. This is accomplished by spraying the oil on very highly heated brick work, so that it is decom- posed into gases of high illuminating power. Gas oil is also used in internal combustion engines and sometimes as a fuel oil for burning purposes. Soap Stock Oil is a very thin light colored non-viscous neu- tral oil. Oils of this class are used as adulterants in soaps, for burning in miners' lamps, for lubricating presses in brick plants PRODUCTS 41 and in compounding oils for many different purposes. The Non- Viscous Neutral oils in various viscosities and col- ors are used for lubricating hand separators, sewing machines and other light, fast running machinery. The highly refined grades are used for greasing the slabs on which candy is poured to cool, in candy factories. Non-viscous neutrals which have been bleached to a very light color, are especially useful for lu- brication of machinery in woolen mills, since these oils do not produce stains if they get on the goods. Parafflne Oil, which runs a little higher in viscosity, is used in the manufacture of sweeping compound, floor oils, as a lubri- cant for light machinery, and as an insulating medium for transformers. The Viscous Neutral Oils furnish the lubricating oils which are most commonly used for automobiles, gas engines, aero- planes, dynamos, turbines and air compressers. It must be borne in mind that oils very similar in appearance can be pro- duced either from Pennsylvania or Mid-Continent crudes. These oils will have equal viscosities and provided they are properly manufactured, it is very difficult, if not impossible, to distin- guish them in actual use. There has been considerable preju- dice against western oils, for automobiles especially. Undoubt- edly there was ground for this at first for refiners had not learned how to produce high grade lubricants from these new crudes. In many cases, the oils were refined with acid and alkali, instead of being filtered, in order to produce light col- ors. Oils so refined, generally contain a little acid and corrode bearings. They also give much more carbon in gas engines and automobile cylinders, than are produced by oils which are fil- tered to a light color, but at the same time, high grade filtered oils are produced from crudes from either source, and are prac- tically equivalent for all practical purposes. As the Pennsylvania crude oil is becoming very scarce and in some cases people will only use Pennsylvania oil, these prod- ucts bring a higher price than those from western crudes. Un- doubtedly several times as much Pennsylvania lubricating oil is sold as is produced in a year, the case being very similar to that of "pure Vermont Maple Syrup." The average consumer is absolutely unable to tell the difference and must depend en- tirely upon the reliability of the company from whom he buys. This same statement applies to most of the petroleum products, for only the large buyers purchasing in tank car lots can afford to have all of the tests made which would be necessary to deter- mine whether they are securing just what they pay for. Re- liable jobbers have their own laboratories completely equipped for this purpose and therefore are in position to know abso- lutely what they are selling. They will not misinform dealers who purchase from them and if the dealers are also honest, the consumer will be certain that he is getting what he is paying for. It is a fact that a great many automobiles and other high I'ETlKK.Ki M n PRODUCTS grade machines have been successfully lubricated for a good many years from oils produced from western crudes and there seems absolutely no reason for believing that an oil must be made from Pennsylvania crude to be satisfactory. Poor oils are produced from either source and are expensive at any price. Red oils in viscosities of from 200 to 300 are produced from Ohio or Indiana crudes. These are very largely used for engine oils and general purpose machine oil. Oils very similar and of similar viscosities are also produced from Mid-Continent crudes but are not as red in color for the same viscosity. The Texas oils, as mentioned before, are especially notable for their low cold test. For this reason they are especially used for lubricat- ing windmills, ice machines and other machinery exposed to low temperatures. In addition, these oils can be produced in much higher viscosities than those from other crudes. Therefore, *hey are largely used for harvester oil, and for lubricating other jeavy slow running machinery. These oils can be produced ranging as high as 3,000 viscosity. Filtered Cylinder Stocks are not ordinarily used for steam cylinder oils except those of the highest grade. They are con- siderably used for compounding with viscous neutrals to pro- duce oils of higher viscosity than can be produced by distilla- tion. By this means, of course, it is possible to make oils of almost any required viscosity. These stocks, also make fine mo- torcycle oils. The Steam Refined Cylinder Stocks which are commonly used for steam cylinder oils, range from 600 to 700 fire test. Those of lower fire test are particularly used for low pressure engines and are usually compounded with from 6 to 12% of acideless tallow oil, lard oil, or neatsfoot oil. As the pressure of the steam to be used increases-, the amount of animal oil is decreased and for very high pressure or superheated steam, only straight mineral stocks of high fire test, are used. Until the introduc- tion of petroleum cylinder stocks, it was practically impos- sible to run steam engines with high pressure steam on account of the difficulty in properly lubricating the cylinders. If ani- mal or vegetable oils are used for this purpose, they will be de- composed by the high temperature, forming fatty acids which corrode the metal of the cylinders, uniting with it to form soaps, which will greatly increase the friction and in the course of time, ruin the cylinders. High grade cylinder stocks are of a greenish, not a brownish color. It is necessary in applying this test to compare stocks of the same fire test, for those of high fire test, even though of the best quality, are more brownish than those of low fire test. It is also important that they should be free from tar or other matter insoluble in gasoline. The best stocks are as free from odor and taste as vaseline. Fuel oil consists of the residue left after distillation of gaso- line and kerosene from the crude. This, of course, will be of various gravities and consistencies, depending on the source PETROLEUM of the crude. In a good many cases, light oils which are not especially valuable for other purposes may be added to the fuel oil, so that it is very apt to represent a mixture of various prod- ucts and residues, which can be more profitably sold this way than as refined products. Koad Oils are very similar to fuel oils, but usually of higher viscosity and containing a considerable amount of asphalt, which may all have been present in the crude oil, or part of it may have been added to produce the necessary consistency. Petroleum Coke furnishes a very high grade fuel, since it is practically pure carbon and contains very little ash. It is Courtesy of the National Petroleum News Oil Well at Katalla, Alaska. sometimes used in the manufacture of artists' crayons, etc., or wherever a practically pure form of carbon is desired. Petro- leum asphalts of various consistencies are very largely used in the manufacture of paving compounds, roofing paper, paint and cement ; also in rubber substitutes. Paraffine Wax in various melting points is used for forming an air and water tight coating for cheese, meats, sausages and other food products ; also for coating the inside of barrels, cheese boxes and butter tubs; for polishing wooden handles, spokes and other wooden ware, and in the manufacture of water proof paper from which signs, ice cream pails, milk bottle caps and sanitary drinking cups are produced. As is well known it is also largely used for various household purposes, especially for sealing fruits and jellies. PRODUCTS Petrolatum ("vaseline") in various colors both with and with- out medication, is largely used as an ointment, and in the manu- facture of salves and other medicinal products. White Mineral Oil, produced from either Russian or Penn sylvania crude, is largely used in the manufacture of cold creams ; also for various medicinal purposes. The chief require- ment is that it shall be absolutely tasteless, odorless and color- l"ss and that it shall not turn yellow on exposure to light. Mineral Castor Oil is used as a cheap lubricant wherever an oil of a very high viscosity is required. It is manufactured from cheap non-viscous oils to which is added aluminum soap. This is not a soap in the ordinary sense of the word, for it is not soluble in water, but it is referred to chemically as a soap, since it is a compound of a metal with fatty acids. When the metal is sodium or potassium, we have ordinary soap. When it is aluminum, calcium, lead, or some other metal, we have an in- soluble soap. The lead plaster frequently used in pharmacy is a lead soap of this class. The particular soap, used in the production of mineral castor oil, is an aluminum soap which is generally manufactured from cotton seed oil. This oil is very stringy and appears to have a very high viscosity, but actually its lubricating value is very slight and it is not at all to be rec- ommended for any lubricating purposes. In a great many cases part of the soap separates from the oil, especially in the pres- ence of moisture, and it is then of even less value. Ordinary Cup Grease and Transmission Grease are similar- products made with calcium or lime soaps. Their manufacture requires a great deal of skill and care, but essentially they are composed of mineral oil and the insoluble lime soap. The grease is made by boiling the animal fat with milk of lime until it is all changed into lime soap and the moisture has practically all been driven out. This soap is then thinned down with mineral oil to the consistency desired. The lubricating value of the grease depends chiefly on the quality of the mineral oil used. So-called fibre greases are produced from mineral oil and soda soap. The ordinary soda soap, which is common hard soap, when thoroughly dry will dissolve to a small amount in mineral oils. These mixtures furnish the fibre greases. All of the greases referred to above are known as "made" greases since they have to be produced by the aid of heat and long continued stirring and cooking. Axle Greases, on the other hand, are known as "set" greases. They consist of mineral oil and lime rosin soap and are made without heat. The ingre- dients are made up in two separate mixtures. These mixtures when stirred together in the proper proportion form the grease, which "sets" in a few minutes. . " BIBLIOGRAPHY. Petroleum : By Sir Boverton Kedwood. D. So., F. K. S. E. Three volumes, 138 tables, 32 plates and maps, 345 figures in the text, 1,167 pages. $15.00. J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, Pa. Oil Fuel: Its Supply, Composition & Application. By Ed- ward Butler, M. I. M. E. 150 illustrations, 328 pages. $2.25. J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, Pa. Lubrication & Lubricants. By Leonard Archbutt and R. Mount ford Deeley. 103 tables, 157 figures in the text. $7.50 J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, Pa. A Handbook on Petroleum. By Capt. J. M. Thomson, Sir Bov erton Redwood and A. Cooper-Key. $3.00. J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, Pa. The Story of Oil. By Walter Sheldon Tower. 271 pages, 35 illustrations. D. Appleton & Co., New York. International Correspondence Schools Reference Library, Vol 85. International Text Book Co., Scranton, Pa. Mineral Resources of the United States. Department of the Interior, U. S. Geological Survey, Washington, D. C. Technology of Petroleum. By H. Neuburger and H. Noalhat 153 ill., *25 plates, 670 pp. $10.00. D. Van Nostrand Co, N. Y. Oil Production Methods. By P. M. Paine and B. K. Stroud 21 6 ill., 37 forms. $3.00. D. Van Nostrand Co., N. Y. Oil Prospecting and Extraction. By F. J. S. Sur. 64 pp. $1.00. D. Van NostramfCo., N. Y. Oil Fields of Russia and the Russian Petroleum Industry By A. B. Thompson. 93 ill. $7.50. D Van Nostrand Co., N. Y. 46 LIBRARY USE RETURN TO DESK FROM WHICH BORROWED LOAN DEPT. THIS BOOK IS DUE BEFORE CLOSING TIME ON LAST DATE STAMPED BELOW LIBRARY USE MAY 19 1965 REC'D Ln MAY O r\ >c o A AJI w ^ 65 -8 AM LD 62A-50m-2,'64 (E3494slO)9412A General Library University of California Berkeley YC 18934 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY