Light, Heavy, Sweet, Sour: How Crude Oil Is Graded
In short: How API gravity and sulfur content sort crude oil into light or heavy and sweet or sour grades, and why those grades shape how oil is refined and priced.
A 2:02 short film in the series “How Things Work”, narrated by intellect_voice_01.
Sources used in this film: Encyclopaedia Britannica, “How is crude oil classified based on API gravity? | Britannica”; U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), “Changing quality mix is affecting crude oil price differentials and refining decisions - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)”; Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. (Britannica Money), “Crude Oil Benchmarks | Brent, WTI, Sweet vs. Sour, Light vs. Heavy | Britannica Money”; PubMed Central (PMC), U.S. National Library of Medicine / NCBI; peer-reviewed review article 'Life in the slow lane' on biodegraded petroleum reservoirs, “Life in the slow lane; biogeochemistry of biodegraded petroleum containing reservoirs and implications for energy recovery and carbon management”; U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), “Refining crude oil - the refining process - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)”.
Sources used in this film
- Encyclopaedia Britannica — How is crude oil classified based on API gravity? | Britannica · View →
- U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) — Changing quality mix is affecting crude oil price differentials and refining decisions - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) · View →
- Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. (Britannica Money) — Crude Oil Benchmarks | Brent, WTI, Sweet vs. Sour, Light vs. Heavy | Britannica Money · View →
- PubMed Central (PMC), U.S. National Library of Medicine / NCBI; peer-reviewed review article 'Life in the slow lane' on biodegraded petroleum reservoirs — Life in the slow lane; biogeochemistry of biodegraded petroleum containing reservoirs and implications for energy recovery and carbon management · View →
- U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) — Refining crude oil - the refining process - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) · View →
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Encyclopaedia Britannica: How is crude oil classified based on API gravity? | Britannica
- Also: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA): Changing quality mix is affecting crude oil price differentials and refining decisions - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)
- Also: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. (Britannica Money): Crude Oil Benchmarks | Brent, WTI, Sweet vs. Sour, Light vs. Heavy | Britannica Money
- Also: PubMed Central (PMC), U.S. National Library of Medicine / NCBI; peer-reviewed review article 'Life in the slow lane' on : Life in the slow lane; biogeochemistry of biodegraded petroleum containing reservoirs and implications for energy recovery and carbon management
- Also: www.eia.gov — Refining crude oil - the refining process - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)
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