diesel is 30% more efficient than gasolene

[emarsh]

This according to the History channel program on "Gasolene". It says we use in the US, 360 million gallons of gasolene per DAY!

Good program if you get a chance to see it.

 

[illflem]

Just enjoyed the show myself. What I found interesting was that in the early days of refining oil gasoline was an unwanted byproduct that was dumped in the closest stream.

 

[Blakers]

What I found interesting was that in the early days of refining oil gasoline was an unwanted byproduct that was dumped in the closest stream.

Yes this is true. The early oil refining business was all based on making kerosene for an illuminant. It was very critical to keep gasoline out of the end product or disaster could result in one's lamp.



When crude oil was discovered in commercial quantities, it was distilled to kerosene to replace coal oil (distilled from coal) and whale oil (an expensive and dwindling resource). A good illuminant was in dire need.



A very ironic chain of events happened around the turn of the century that effected the oil industry. First, Thomas Edison's invention of the electric light bulb drastically cut the demand for an illuminant, threatening the future of the oil industry. Then, at about the same time, the auto industry suddenly grew, due to Henry Ford's mass production and cheap cars, instantly creating a huge demand for gasoline, a previously unwanted byproduct of kerosene production. The industry went from a supplier of illuminants to a supplier of motor fuels virtually overnight. No one knew what lied ahead for the industry with two world wars in the future to supply.



As you can tell, oil history has interested me since I was 4 years old. See Blake's Early Petroleum History Index



Blake