- •Астраханский государственный технический университет
- •«Английский язык»
- •Методическое пособие утверждено на заседании кафедры “ияито” протокол № 10 от 16.05.07
- •IV. Read the text carefully and say what you have learnt about petroleum. A. Petroleum
- •B. Formation of petroleum Biogenic theory
- •Abiogenic theory
- •C. From the history of the oil industry
- •Exercises
- •V. Say if the following statements are true or false. Correct the false ones.
- •III. Read the text carefully and say what you have learnt about natural gas. A. Chemical composition of natural gas
- •B. Storage and transportation of natural gas
- •C. The use of natural gas
- •D. Sources of natural gas
- •E. Possible future sources
- •F. Safety
- •Exercises
- •VII. Render the text about natural gas in the oral form. Unit 3 Oil well
- •I. Study and learn the vocabulary list:
- •II. Look at the title and the picture and say what information the text gives. Read the text attentively for the details and be ready to discuss it with your groupmates.
- •A. The history of an oil well
- •B. Life of a well
- •Drilling
- •Completion
- •3) Production
- •4) Abandonment
- •C. Types of oil wells
- •Exercises
- •I. Answer the following questions:
- •II. Translate the following sentences into English using your active vocabulary:
- •III. Create a questionnaire on the topic “Oil wells” and test your groupmates’ knowledge. You can use the following questions:
- •Unit 4 Oil exploration
- •I. Study and learn the vocabulary list:
- •II. Read the text carefully and say what you have learnt oil exploration.
- •A. Searching for Oil and Gas
- •B. Oil extraction
- •C. Working conditions in the oil industry
- •D. Occupations in the oil industry
- •Exercises
- •I. Answer the following questions:
- •II. Give definitions to the following jobs:
- •III. Find in the text the English equivalents to the following words and word combinations:
- •IV. Write down own sentences using words and word combinations from exercise 3.
- •V. Make up dialogues using the following situation:
- •Unit 5 How oil drilling works
- •I. Read and learn the vocabulary list:
- •II. Read the text carefully and say what you have learnt oil drilling. A. Preparing to drill
- •B. Setting up the rig
- •C. Drilling
- •D. Drilling rig classification
- •Exercises
- •V. Look at Fig. 4 and tell about the structure of an oil rig.
- •III. Read the text attentively and say what you have learnt about offshore drilling. A. The drilling template
- •B. Moveable offshore drilling rigs
- •1) Drilling barges
- •2) Jack-up rigs
- •3) Submersible rigs
- •4) Semisubmersible rigs
- •5) Drillships
- •C. Permanent platforms
- •1) Fixed platforms
- •2) Compliant towers
- •3) Seastar platforms
- •4) Floating production systems
- •5) Tension leg platforms
- •6) Subsea system
- •7) Spar platforms
- •Exercises
- •I. Answer the following questions:
- •II. Say if the sentences are true or false. Correct the false sentences.
- •III. Translate the following sentences into English using your active vocabulary:
- •Unit 7 How oil refining works
- •I. Study and learn the vocabulary list:
- •II. Read the text attentively and say what you have learnt about oil refinery. A. From the history of oil refinery
- •B. The refining process
- •Treating and blending the fractions
- •D. Safety and environmental concerns
- •Exercises
- •I. Answer the following questions:
- •II. Say if the statements are true or false. Correct the false statements.
- •III. Translate the following text into English using your active vocabulary:
- •IV. Render the text about oil refinery in the oral form.
- •II. Read the text attentively and say what you have learnt about gasoline. A. What is gasoline?
- •B. Chemical analysis and production of gasoline
- •C. Octane rating
- •D. Volatility
- •E. Gasoline Additives
- •1) Lead
- •3) Oxygenate blending
- •F. Health concerns
- •Exercises
- •I. Answer the following questions:
- •II. Say if the statements are true or false. Correct the false statements.
- •III. Translate the following sentences into English using your active vocabulary:
- •IV. Render the text about gasoline in the oral form. Contents
Abiogenic theory
The idea of abiogenic petroleum origin was introduced into the Western world by astronomer Thomas Gold based on thoughts from Russia, mainly on studies of Nikolai Kudryavtsev. The idea proposes that large amounts of carbon exist naturally in the planet, some in the form of hydrocarbons. Hydrocarbons are less dense than aqueous pore fluids, and migrate upward through deep fracture networks. Thermophilic, rock-dwelling microbial life-forms are in part responsible for the biomarkers found in petroleum.
This theory is very much a minority opinion amongst geologists. This theory often pops up when scientists are not able to explain apparent oil inflows into certain oil reservoirs. These instances are rare.
C. From the history of the oil industry
It is hard to say when humans first began using oil. Some historians say it was known at least 6,000 years ago. Ancient stories tell of a Chinese village where dark liquid seeped from the ground. Alarmed farmers prayed to their gods for help because the substance was ruining their crops. When a feudal lord learned of the problem, he discovered that oil could be used to polish swords and armor. He sent workers to gather the liquid in jars, solving the farmers’ problem and paying them for the oil.
Records written on stone in ancient Egypt suggest oil was used to grease the axles of the pharaohs’ chariots. Egyptians also used asphalt, a thick form of oil, as a coating to help preserve mummies. They also may have paved roads with asphalt.
Legends say the Greeks destroyed an enemy fleet by pouring oil on the sea and setting it afire. Later, a Roman general had a similar idea. He smeared pigs with oil, ignited them, and drove the swine into an enemy camp. In fact, the Romans came up with the term petroleum, from the Latin words “petra”, meaning rock, and “oleum”, meaning oil.
Two thousand years ago, Mayan Indians in Mexico described a liquid ointment that was used to anoint the bodies of priests in rituals. It was also used as fuel for fires during religious ceremonies.
Oil and its uses are mentioned in the Bible as well. Pitch, a form of natural asphalt, was said to have been used to caulk ships. Babylonian writings about the Great Flood say that Noah used pitch to caulk his ark.
In Venezuela, pirates in Lake Maracaibo caulked their ships with natural tar.
Historians say the Chinese used petroleum as early as the third century B.C. Oil lamps and cooking stoves are two of the known uses of petroleum in China at the time. They used long, metal drills to reach the oil within the ground and then pushed bamboo tubes into the holes. As the oil gushed to the surface, they collected it.
Besides fuel, the Chinese also used oil for medicinal purposes. After it was filtered through cloth, the fine oil was used as balm for skin. The Chinese combined oil with other substances and took it internally to relieve pain from stomachaches and intestinal problems.
The Chinese were probably among the first to use natural gas as well. They often built ovens and hearths in locations where natural gas escaped from the ground since they had no means to transport it.
When colonists from England arrived in America, they found the Native Americans skimming oil scum from the surface of streams and lakes. Using blankets to collect the oil, Native Americans used it as medicine. During the Revolutionary War, Native Americans taught George Washington’s troops how to treat frostbite with oil.
Of course, oil and gas are not the only products that come from a reservoir rock. In the early 1800s, many oil wells were drilled to bring the salty water, known as brine, to the surface. After the water evaporated, the salt was left behind to be sold.
Demand for oil began to increase from the middle of the eighteenth century. During the Industrial Revolution, oil was needed for lighting homes and factories. Before petroleum, whale oil was commonly used to make candles and as fuel for lamps. However, the supply of whale oil was running low and the price had greatly risen. At that time petroleum was obtained by distilling it from coal, by skimming it from ponds and streams, and by oil shale retorting. None of these processes could meet the rising demand for oil.
On 27 August 1859, a forty-year-old former railroad conductor, Edwin L. Drake, struck oil at his well near Titusville, Pa. The well was 69 feet deep and produced 15 barrels a day. The area quickly boomed and the modern oil industry was born. Soon oil exploration began to spread throughout the world.