Oil And Gas Industry In The Gilded Age

Modern societies throughout the world are dependent on oil and gas. Without these two resources America would have never experienced the Gilded Age that made America the industrial powerhouse that it is today. Not only do these resources supply us with transportation and countless other material items but because of how large the industry is it accounts for tens of thousands of jobs within the three sectors of the industry. Every year oil and gas are becoming rapidly more important.

The phenomenon of oil and gas is not new, they have played roles in history since early civilization. several ancient cultures used oil as a sealant to bind materials like the Sumerians and the Mesopotamians who used bitumen to seal boats and make roads. Oil was …show more content…
The first sector of the three is the upstream sector which is known as the exploration and production sector because it involves locating, recovering and producing oil and natural gas. The obvious first step in the process is to search for suitable locations that might contain oil underground. This is usually done with the help of a geologist who is usually employed directly by the firm. Some of the tools that the geologist might use to help them with this job include satellite images, gravity meters, hydrophones and seismometers. Before they begin to drill they must obtain a permission from the owner of the onshore or offshore land and conduct mandatory geological and geophysical surveys. There is uncertainty within these surveys so the only way to be sure that the site has oil is to drill exploratory wells. This is a risk for the company because usually multiple wells are dug and they are expensive and there is a chance that there will not be any or oil or not enough of it to have a return on the investment. The wells provide the geologist with core samples that help them make the decision on whether or not the site is qualified. If they decided it is not then they will plug the wells back up and start over. The next step is the drilling of long term wells and well operation. Once a long term well is dug it can usually last between ten and twenty years …show more content…
This sector involves the refining of crude oil and the selling and distribution of natural gas. Refineries process crude oil into useful items by using different processing units that use heat and pressure to separate the products. Some of the products produced from the downstream sector include liquefied petroleum gas, jet fuel, fertilizers, antifreeze and synthetic rubber. Product marketing is an important part of this process because they must find customers who have a demand for these finished products whether that be through retail consumers or companies. After this the products are transported to where they will be sold, used or distributed. This step uses conventional transportation like railroads, trucking and