[Fot] Diesel and Gas out of a Barrel of oil

[Bill Babcock]

Yup. Diesel isn't that easy to get from Crude unless you target it.  
Diesel is actually a lot like plant oil, which is one of many reasons  
why biodiesel production is possible. It's interesting that some folks  
are starting to target direct production of diesel from bioengineered  
algae, which if you think about it, is pretty much how we get crude to  
begin with. No interceding steps--just big shallow tanks on non-arable  
land being skimmed. There's even a scheme for using highway medians  
for the tanks and skimming with freeway-traveling converter trucks. In  
the short term there will be schemes and speculators, in the long term  
oil from the ground will be a lot less important. At least it better  
be. The supply of oil in the world is huge, but finite.

On Jun 4, 2008, at 12:33 PM, Scott Janzen wrote:

> This is an exerpt from a larger article - apparently the refining  
> process is
> not what most of us assume.
> "Al Mannato, a fuel-issues manager at API, explains that oil  
> refineries tend
> to fall into two categories: catalytic cracking and hydrocracking.  
> Most U.S.
> refineries are set up for catalytic cracking, which turns each  
> barrel of
> crude oil into about 50-percent gasoline, 15-percent diesel, and the
> remainder into jet fuel, home heating oil, heavy fuel oil, liquefied
> petroleum gas, asphalt, and various other products. In Europe and  
> most of
> the rest of the world, refineries use a hydrocracking process, which
> produces more like 25-percent gasoline and 25-percent diesel from that
> barrel of oil. So the rest of the world is already maximizing diesel
> production. In fact, despite using a refining strategy that  
> minimizes the
> production of gasoline, Europe still ends up with too much of the  
> stuff, so
> it exports it to America-about one of every eight gallons of  
> gasoline that
> we consume. "
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Joe Curry" <spitlist at cox.net>
> To: "Chuck Arnold" <triosan at gmail.com>; <LOddTR at aol.com>; "Friends"
> <fot at autox.team.net>
> Sent: Wednesday, June 04, 2008 3:02 PM
> Subject: Re: [Fot] Oil - Since Triumphs Drip, Its Worth A Minute To  
> Read
>
>
>> Can anyone explain to me why the cost of Diesel (which I understand
>> requires
>> less refining than gasoline and therefore should be cheaper)  is  
>> trying to
>> reach prices double thatof gasiline?  It seems that the people  
>> influencing
>> these prices are trying to send a message to people not to convert to
>> diesel
>> power even though it is supposed to be more efficient.
>>
>> Joe C.
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Chuck Arnold" <triosan at gmail.com>
>> To: <LOddTR at aol.com>; "Friends" <fot at autox.team.net>
>> Sent: Wednesday, June 04, 2008 11:27 AM
>> Subject: Re: [Fot] Oil - Since Triumphs Drip, Its Worth A Minute To  
>> Read
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Bill Babcock
Babcock & Jenkins
Billb at bnj.com
503.936.7660
www.bnj.com