Oil


 * Note**: This article is about oil as a source of energy. If you want to find out more general information on the properties of oils, check out the page on fats or the page on fatty acids.

Can be used religoysly as anoitments for Judiasim and Christianity.

We commonly think of the stuff we put into our cars as being made of "oil." Although that is correct, calling something an oil still doesn't narrow the term enough to get a real sense of what this compound's properties are. The oil that we refine so that it can be used as a source of energy has a specific set of characteristics and is specifically referred to as petroleum or as crude oil.

Crude oil began to form millions of years ago when the remains of plants and animals settled in certain areas of the Earth. Over time, sand and silt settled on top of them. Generally, this happened in sea beds (even if they aren't that way today). Gradually, the pressure from this phenomena changed what used to be decomposing organic matter into petroleum. Although crude oil is one of the most common fuels, we only have about 7,700 EJ (ectajoules) of oil remaining. This is still a large amount of raw energy (the entire world uses about 500 EJ per year), but it will not be enough to supply us indefinitely.

Petroleum is made up of hydrocarbon chains of various lengths. They can with be very long (having a chain of more than 20 Carbon atoms), relatively short (a chain of only one Carbon atom), or somewhere in the middle (octane, which is pictured below, has eight Carbon atoms). This long chin of hydrocarbons is what makes crude oil be in the same general group as fats or fatty acids. The fact that petroleum is liquid at room temperature makes it part of the family of oils (hence the term crude oil).

Unfortunately, these different types of crude oil are all mixed together. In order to convert the different types of oil into something useful, these different compounds must first be separated to be with similar types of molecules. This is the purpose of an oil refinery. Since the different components of petroleum have different properties. Most importantly, they all have different boiling points. The modern refining process allows us to take advantage of this fact.

When the oil enters the refinery, it goes into a fractional distillation column. It is then heated. By carefully controlling the temperature inside the column, refineries are able to separate different types of oils by boiling (or not boiling them). When the crude oil boils, the part with less Carbon atoms (the part that is actually boiling) turns into a gas that can then be treated. In a similar way, the very heavy oils (which contain long chains of Carbon) settle to the bottom. They can then be put through another process (called cracking) to make then into forms that are more widely useful. In cracking, various methods are used to decrease the amount of Carbon atoms in one chain. One of the more common methods is to heat the oils to very high temperatures until they break apart.



Oil is one of the most common commodities we use today. It would not be possible for us to use it in so many ways without the refining process that we have established. This material carries great benefits, as it allows us to make products that are some of the most efficient at powering our methods of transportation. However, it is also a huge contributor to the increasing levels of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere. It is important that we recognize its positive and negative aspects so we may use is wisely.

US Energy Information Association: [] HowStuffWorks: [] Wikipedia: []
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Electrodes are used to provide current through nonmetal objects to alter them in numerous ways and to measure conductivity for numerous purposes. Examples include:
 * Electrodes for medical purposes, such as [|EEG], [|ECG], [|ECT], [|defibrillator]
 * Electrodes for [|electrophysiology] techniques in biomedical research
 * Electrodes for execution by the [|electric chair]
 * Electrodes for [|electroplating]
 * Electrodes for [|arc welding]
 * Electrodes for [|cathodic protection]
 * Electrodes for [|grounding]
 * Electrodes for [|chemical analysis] using [|electrochemical] methods
 * Inert electrodes for [|electrolysis] (made of [|platinum])
 * [|Membrane electrode assembly]

Cosmetics
Oils are applied to hair to give it a lustrous look, to prevent tangles and roughness and to stabilize the hair to promote growth.

Religion
Oils are commonly used in ritual anointment. As a particular example, holy anointing oil has been an important ritual liquid for Judaism and Christianity

Painting
Color pigments are easily suspended in oil, making it suitable as a supporting medium for paints. The oldest known extant oil paintings date from 650 AD.

Heat transfer
Oils are used as coolants in oil cooling, for instance in electric transformers. Oils are also used to enhance heating in other applications, such as cooking (especially in flying).