REPUBLIC OF BENIN

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MINISTRY OF SECONDARY EDUCATION OF THE
TECHNICAL VOCATIONAL TRAINING OF THE
RECONVERSION AND THE INSERTION OF THE YOUNG
PEOPLE
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HIGH SCHOOL « IMONLE »
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2ND D
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ENGLISH PRESENTATION

Group Members (Group 5) Professor

ACAKPO Rode Elisabeth
AKPO Clotilde Libérate
GNANKPON Israël
Mr. Raymond AKOMOU
HOUNSSINOU Mario
KPOTANME Raïssa
YAMADJAKO Hermes

Academic Year : 2017-2018

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 OUTLINE

Introduction
I. History of Crude Oil Usage
II. Importance of oil
III. Types of oil
IV. Dangers related to oil
V. The oil market
Conclusion

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 Introduction
Oil or more precisely 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 forms of petrochemicals. It is
a nonrenewable resource, which means that it can't be replaced naturally at the
rate we consume it and is therefore a limited resource.
Further down we will in more details about oil.

I. History of Crude Oil Usage

Although fossil fuels like coal have been harvested in one way or another for
centuries, crude oil was first discovered and developed during the Industrial
Revolution, and its industrial uses were first developed in the 19th
century. Newly invented machines revolutionized the way we do work, and they
depended on these resources to run. Today, the world's economy is largely
dependent on fossil fuels such as crude oil, and the demand for these resources
often spark political unrest, since a small number of countries control the largest
reservoirs. Like any industry, supply and demand heavily affects the prices and
profitability of crude oil. The United States, Saudi Arabia, and Russia are the
leading producers of oil in the world.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, however, the United States was one of
the world's leading oil producers, and U.S. companies developed the technology
to make oil into useful products like gasoline. During the middle and last decades
of the 20th century, however, U.S. oil production fell dramatically, and the U.S.
became an energy importer. Its major supplier was the Organization of Petroleum
Exporting Countries (OPEC), founded in 1960, which consists of the world's
largest (by volume) holders of crude oil and natural gas, reserves. As such, the
OPEC nations had a lot of economic leverage in determining supply, and
therefore the price, of oil in the late 1900s.

In the early 21st century, the development of new technology, particularly hydro-
fracturing, has created a second U.S. energy boom, largely decreasing the
importance and influence of OPEC

II. Importance of oil

It's easy to understand why oil is so important in our lives. Your parents couldn't
drive their car unless it was filled with gasoline or petrol. The school bus couldn't
make it to school without gasoline.

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Gasoline is made from crude oil. Lubricating oil is also used to keep our automobile
engines from getting too hot and to ensure that all moving parts of the machinery
are kept in good working order.

In fact, our world would almost grind to a halt without oil. Factories would stop
running. So would cars. Airplanes would be grounded. Tractors on the farm would
sputter to a standstill and rust. And people's homes and offices, if heated by oil,
would freeze in winter. Oil is used in many products. Here are just a few examples:
farm fertilizers, plastic toys and other plastic goods, cosmetics, detergents, and
nylon clothing. Even waxes for chewing gum are made from oil.

III. Types of oil

The four primary types of oil are:

a. The Very Light Oils / Light Distillates which include: Jet Fuel,
Gasoline, Kerosene, Light Virgin Naphtha, Heavy Virgin Naphtha,
Petroleum Ether, Petroleum Spirit, and Petroleum Naphtha. These oils
tend to be highly volatile and can evaporate within just a couple of days,
which quickly diffuses and decreases toxicity levels.
b. Light Oils / Middle Distillates which include: Most Grade 1 and
Grade 2 Fuel Oils and Diesel Fuel Oils as well as Most Domestic Fuels
and Light Crude Marine Gas Oils.
These oils are moderately volatile, less evaporative and moderately
toxic.
c. Medium Oils: Most of the crude oil on the market these days falls into
this particular category. Low volatility makes for messier & more
complex “clean ups” and when it comes to the increased toxicity levels,
I believe we have all lived long enough to see what “Medium Oil” spills
can do to the local ocean life out on the seas or local wildlife right here
on “terra firma!”
d. Heavy Fuel Oils which include the heavy crude oils, Grade 3,4,5 and
6 Fuel Oils (Bunker B & C) as well as Intermediate and Heavy Marine
Fuels. With these oils there is very slow and little evaporation and
therefore toxicity is highly increased. This not only means potentially
severe contamination for fish, fowl and fur-bearing creatures, but
possible “long term” contamination of water and soil as well.

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 IV. The oil market
In fact, there are actually over 160 different oils traded on the market theses days,
but for simplicity’s sake, let’s discuss the three primary oils that get most of the
serious attention in the news and in the markets.
a. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is an extremely high quality crude oil
which is greatly valued for the fact that it is of such premium quality, more
and better gasoline can be refined from a single barrel than from most other
types of oil available on the market. The WTI “API Gravity” is 39.6
degrees, which makes it a “light” crude oil, with only 0.24 percent sulfur,
which makes it a “sweet” crude oil. The term “API Gravity” refers to
the “American Petroleum Institute Gravity, which is a measure that
compares how light or heavy a crude oil is in relation to water. If an oils
“API Gravity” is greater than 10 then it is lighter than water and will float
on it. If an oils “API Gravity” is less than 10, it is heavier than water and
will sinks.
These combined qualities as well as location make WTI a prime crude oil
to be refined in the United States, which is by far, the largest gasoline
consuming country on the planet. The vast majority of WTI crude oils are
refined in the Midwest and Gulf Coast regions. Even with production of
WTI crude oil in decline, WTI is often priced from $5 to $7 higher per
barrel than “OPEC Basket” oil and on average, $1 to $2 higher per barrel
than “Brent Blend” oils.

b. Brent Blend is actually a combination of different oils from 15 fields

throughout the Scottish Brent and Ninian systems located in the North Sea.
Its “API Gravity” is 38.3 degrees, which makes it a “light” crude oil, but
clearly not quite as “light” as WTI. It also contains about 0.37 percent
sulfur, which makes it a “sweet” crude oil, but then again, not quite as
“sweet” than WTI. Brent Blend is quite excellent for making gasoline and
middle distillates, both of which are utilized in large quantities in
Northwest Europe, where Brent blend crude oil is most often refined. Brent
Blend production, much like that of WTI, is also on the decline, but it
remains a major benchmark for other crude oils in Europe or Africa. Brent
Blend oil price is often priced at a $4 higher per barrel compared to the
OPEC Basket price.

c. OPEC Basket oil is a collective seven different crude oils from Algeria,
Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Nigeria, Dubai', Venezuela and the Mexican
Isthmus. The acronym OPEC stands for “Organization of Petroleum-
Exporting Countries” which is an organization that was formed in 1960 in

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 order to create some common policy for the production and sale of oil
within its jurisdiction.
Because OPEC oil has a much higher percentage of sulfur within its natural
make-up and therefore is not nearly as “sweet” as WTI or even Brent Blend
and since it is also not naturally as “light” as well, the prices of OPEC oil
are normally consistently lower than either Brent Blend or WTI. However,
OPEC’s willingness or ability to quickly increase production when
necessary makes OPEC a consistent “Major Player” in the oil industry!

V. Dangers related to oil

- Crude oil toxins can attack your body in many ways at once.

- Children and pregnant women are especially at risk.

- Medical officers are already studying illnesses among oil recovery workers in
the Gulf.

Swimming in crude-slicked waters is an unsavory prospect at best and one that is

most definitely unhealthful, although the molecular mechanics of why crude is so
dangerous to humans are poorly understood, say toxics researchers.

Crude oil is a complex mixture of petrochemicals that includes all the most
dangerous chemicals in gasoline, plus plenty of others -- clearly not something
you want to be coated in.

"A lot of those chemicals are neurotoxins, which means they affect the brain,"
said Tracey Woodruff, an associate professor and director of the Program on
Reproductive Health and the Environment at the University of California at San
Francisco.

Dizziness, euphoria, nausea, blurry vision and headaches are a few of the short-
term effects of such compounds as benzene, toluene, and xylenes, which are also
found in gasoline. The symptoms can be a lot like a very bad case of alcohol
poisoning, she said, which also foul up the workings of the nervous system.

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There are long-term health dangers too. Benzene, in particular, has been tied to
adult leukemia and other cancers. Benzene does this by entering cells and
damaging DNA material, Woodruff said, although the specifics are not well
understood.

What makes crude oil potentially even more dangerous, however, is that it
contains so many toxic chemicals that can all attack the body at once, Woodruff
explained.

"The combination can, in many cases, have more effect," Woodruff said. "It's like
getting hit from different sides -- right hook, left hook and on top of the head."

This sort of multiple attack is less well understood, as most studies tend to focus
on one chemical at a time.

Another variable is how differently the toxins can affect different sorts of people.

"It definitely would be worse for children to be exposed," said Woodruff. Infants
and even unborn children could also be seriously harmed because the neurotoxins
can interfere with brain development, she said.

Many of the toxins in crude oil can be absorbed directly through the skin or lungs,
so the only way to avoid them is to keep away or wear protective gear like
specially-designed respirators, boots, gloves and suits.

Workers already involved in the clean up are particularly at risk, of course, and
they are already reporting symptoms of all sorts, including physical injuries from
slipping on the oil, plus heat and fatigue, according to the National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

A NIOSH team of two industrial hygienists (specialists in workplace hazards)

and two medical officers arrived in Louisiana on June 2 to evaluate illnesses and
injuries among groups of offshore workers. The Louisiana Department of Health
and Hospitals has also agreed to provide medical reports of seven previously
hospitalized fishermen for the study.

"NIOSH is working with OSHA, Coast Guard, and others to collect and analyze
data about the exposures that the Deepwater Horizon response workers may be

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encountering in various stages of activity (offshore and onshore), and symptoms
that response workers are reporting," said Fred Blosser, a spokesman for NIOSH.

"We're working intensely, and data collection/analysis are in progress. This will
give us a basis for assessing potential hazards in various operations, and making
recommendations."

As for the handful of journalists who have decided to throw caution to the wind
and swim in the muck unprotected, it's just unwise, Woodruff explained. "It
seems like something even the birds are trying to avoid."

Conclusion
We see how oil is important for our day to day life. Nevertheless it present
some danger we should be aware of and make sure we proctect ourselves
agains them.