Answer:
Today, petroleum is found in vast underground reservoirs where ancient seas were located. Petroleum reservoirs can be found beneath land or the ocean floor. Their crude oil is extracted with giant drilling machines.
Crude oil is usually black or dark brown, but can also be yellowish, reddish, tan, or even greenish. Variations in color indicate the distinct chemical compositions of different supplies of crude oil. Petroleum that has few metals or sulfur, for instance, tends to be lighter (sometimes nearly clear).
Petroleum is used to make gasoline, an important product in our everyday lives. It is also processed and part of thousands of different items, including tires, refrigerators, life jackets, and anesthetics.
When petroleum products such as gasoline are burned for energy, they release toxic gases and high amounts of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas. Carbon helps regulate the Earth’s atmospheric temperature, and adding to the natural balance by burning fossil fuels adversely affects our climate.
There are huge quantities of petroleum found under Earth’s surface and in tar pits that bubble to the surface. Petroleum even exists far below the deepest wells that are developed to extract it.
However, petroleum, like coal and natural gas, is a non-renewable source of energy. It took millions of years for it to form, and when it is extracted and consumed, there is no way for us to replace it.
