Petroleum is formed mainly of mixtures of hydrocarbons, carbon compounds, and hydrogen. It is believed by scientists and researches of various companies such as the Triple Diamond Energy Corp. that the origin of these petroleum hydrocarbons is rooted to the remains and the fossils of the plants and animals that lived millions of years ago. It is a common myth that oil was created from the remains of the dinosaur. This statement has no scientific backing and is not supported by any research. Although dinosaurs were huge animals, still they were not large enough to create such the large amount of oil in the earth today. 

A Deeper Look In To How Petroleum Is Formed

When tiny organism die, they sink down to the sea bed and become covered with mud and silt. As this continues over centuries, many of these organisms become buried deep inside mud and silt. Over time, hundreds of feet of mud and silt accumulate over these tiny organisms. Most of the oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur are removed by bacteria, leaving only hydrogen and carbon.

These plants and animals do not decay fully because of the lack of oxygen in their environment. These partially decomposed organisms become a slimy mass, which then become covered by layers of sediment. As time progresses, these layers grow and completely cover the organisms. The sediment deposits and the pressure and the weight the volume of the mud is reduced to a small fraction of what it once was. At around the depth of ten thousand feet of sediment, these organisms turn in to different kinds of petroleum due to the passage of time and the continuous heat and pressure exerted. 

Different Types Of Petroleum 

Temperature has a major role in determining the kind of petroleum that is created. At high temperatures, the petroleum that is created is light. At low temperatures, the petroleum created is thick like asphalt. As the substances decompose, gas is formed. This gas sometimes stays mixed with the oil and often becomes separated from the oil. At temperatures over 500 degrees Fahrenheit, the organic mater is completely destroyed and neither gas nor oil is formed.

With this excess heat, the mud and silt then gets compressed in to a rock structure that is known as shale. When the mud takes the form of shale, all of the sea water, oil, and gas is squeezed out. This rock from which the liquid moves is called the source rock and the rock to which this liquid moves is called the reservoir rock.  Oil and gas drilling companies such Triple Diamond Energy Corp. then use science, technology, and excavation to extract these products from deep within the earth.