Oil and Petroleum Systems Flashcards
7 cards from real Energy and Utilities practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Oil and Petroleum Systems flashcards as text
What does the term 'sour crude' indicate about a crude oil's composition?
Answer: The crude oil has a high sulfur content, generally above 0.5% by weight
Sour crude contains high levels of hydrogen sulfide and sulfur compounds, requiring additional refinery processing to remove sulfur before producing clean fuels.
What is the function of a three-phase separator in oil production facilities?
Answer: To simultaneously separate crude oil, natural gas, and produced water that come up from a well together
A three-phase separator uses gravity and retention time to divide the wellstream into its three phases: crude oil, natural gas, and produced water, which are each handled separately.
Which federal agency leads the response to major oil spills under the National Contingency Plan?
Answer: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Coast Guard
Under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 and the National Contingency Plan, the EPA leads inland spill response and the U.S. Coast Guard leads coastal and marine spill response.
What is 'fluid catalytic cracking' (FCC) used for in petroleum refining?
Answer: To break down large, heavy hydrocarbon molecules into smaller, more valuable products like gasoline
FCC uses a catalyst and heat to break (crack) heavy oil fractions into lighter, higher-value products such as gasoline, diesel, and petrochemical feedstocks.
What does the Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) of a petroleum product indicate?
Answer: The tendency of a petroleum liquid to evaporate at 100°F, used to assess volatility and safety
RVP measures how easily a petroleum liquid evaporates; it is used to regulate gasoline formulations for air quality and to assess fire and explosion hazards during storage.
What is a Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading (FPSO) vessel primarily used for?
Answer: To process, store, and offload crude oil produced from offshore wells directly to tankers
An FPSO is a ship-shaped offshore facility that receives crude oil from subsea wells, processes and stores it onboard, then offloads it periodically to shuttle tankers for export.
Which unit of measurement is the global standard for trading crude oil on international markets?
Answer: Barrel (42 US gallons / approximately 159 liters)
The oil barrel of 42 US gallons is the universally accepted unit for pricing and trading crude oil, used by OPEC, commodity exchanges, and oil companies worldwide.