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Crude oil (petroleum)

Petroleum, or "crude oil" or simply "oil", is a fossil fuel and nonrenewable source of energy.  Crude oil is made by 84.5% carbon, 13% hydrogen, 1–3% sulfur, and less than 1% each of nitrogen, oxygen, metals, and salts.  World oil demand is scaling record highs, boosted by strong summer air travel, increased oil use in power generation, and surging Chinese petrochemical activity [IEA, 2023].

Diesel fuel

Diesel fuel, or "diesel oil", is the main oil-derived fuel, obtained through crude oil distillation.  Because diesel is heavier on the molecular level (molar mass of 170g/mol vs 107g/mol of petrol), its energy density is greater than most other fossil fuels [XLM, 2023].  With gasoline (petrol) engines, only 20% of the fuel actually moves the vehicle and the rest is lost to friction, noise, or other engine functions.  Diesel engines, however, can reach 40% efficiency and more, making it much easier to move heavy vehicles and not exude a lot more fuel association with crude oil, both on land and on the ocean floor.

Diesel fuel use

Most freight and delivery trucks as well as trains, buses, boats, farm & construction machines, and some cars have diesel engines.  Diesel fuel is also used in diesel-engine generators to generate electricity.  Many industrial facilities, large buildings, institutional facilities, hospitals, and electric utilities have diesel generators for backup & emergency power supply.

Petroleum producers & consumers

Global oil production amounted to 93.9 million barrels per day in 2022 (14,929 million liters per day).  The level of oil production reached an all-time high in 2019, at nearly 95 million barrels [STAT, 2023].  The U.S. is the world's leading crude oil producer, followed by Saudi Arabia, Russia, China, and Canada.  Figure 1 shows world liquid fuel production from 2018 to 2024 (estimated).  Figure 2 shows the main oil producers (in 2022) & consumers (in 2021).

Figure 1: World liquid fuel (oil) production