Crude oil 

is a naturally occurring, unrefined petroleum product composed of hydrocarbon

deposits and other organic materials. A type of fossil fuel, crude oil can be refined to
produce usable products such as gasoline, diesel, and various other forms of
petrochemicals.

Refined Products. Definition. Refined petroleum products are derived from crude oils

through processes such as catalytic cracking and fractional distillation. Refining is a
necessary step before oil can be burned as fuel or used to create end products. These
petroleum products include gasoline, distillates such as diesel fuel and heating oil, jet fuel,
petrochemical feedstocks, waxes, lubricating oils, and asphalt. 

The terms sweet and sour are a reference to the sulfur content of crude oil. Early prospectors would taste oil to
determine its quality, with low sulfur oil actually tasting sweet. Crude is currently considered sweet if it contains
less than 0.5% sulfur.

Sweet crude is easier to refine and safer to extract and transport than sour crude. Because sulfur is corrosive,
light crude also causes less damage to refineries and thus results in lower maintenance costs over time. Due to
all these factors, sweet crude commands up to a $15 dollar premium per barrel over sour.

Major locations where sweet crude is found include the Appalachian Basin in Eastern North America, Western
Texas, the Bakken Formation of North Dakota and Saskatchewan, the North Sea of Europe, North Africa,
Australia, and the Far East including Indonesia.

The Reid Vapour Pressure (RVP)

Testing is a simple and generally used method for measuring the volatility of
petroleum liquids. Measurement of the RVP is conducted at 37,8oC (100oF). The
greater the RVP value, the more volatile is the oil. Normally crude oil has a RVP of
between 0,1 and 0,8kg/cm2.
A sample of liquid is put into the test container at atmospheric pressure. The volume
of liquid should be one fifth of the container’s total volume. Then the container is
sealed and immersed in a water bath, which is heated to 37,80C. The container is
then shaken in order to mix the liquid properly and the rise in pressure due to
vaporisation can be read on the attached pressure gauge. This pressure gauge gives
a close approximation in bars.
The pour point of a liquid is the temperature below which the liquid loses its flow
characteristics. It is defined as the minimum temperature in which the oil has the ability
to pour down from a beaker.