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  • 石油动力

    Drill rigs pumping oil with mountains in the background under cloudy skies.

     

    What is this unusual sight?
    ::这是什么不寻常的景象?

    There's  oil  beneath this land. These drill rigs are pumping it to the surface. Drill rigs can be small and closely spaced. They can be large and solitary. This is true, especially when they are in deep  water  offshore.
    ::钻井钻井的钻井机可能很小,而且密密密。它们可能很大,而且单独。这是正确的,特别是当它们位于岸外的深水中时。

    Oil
    ::石油油油

    Oil  is a thick, dark brown or black liquid. It is found in   layers of Earth's  crust . Oil is currently the most commonly used  source  of  energy  in the world.
    ::石油是一种厚厚的、深褐色的或黑色的液体,存在于地壳层中,目前是世界上最常用的能源来源。

    How Oil Forms
    ::石油形式如何

    The way oil forms is similar, in many ways, to  coal . Tiny organisms like  plankton  and algae die and settle to the bottom of the sea.  Sediments  settle over the  organic  material. Oxygen is kept away by the sediments. When the material is buried deep enough, it is exposed to high  heat  and pressure. Over millions of years, the organic material transforms into liquid oil.
    ::石油形式在许多方面与煤类似,浮游生物和藻类等小生物死亡,沉淀在海底。沉积在有机物上。氧被沉积物挡住。当材料被深埋到深处时,就会暴露在高热和高压之下。在数以百万计的时间内,有机物会转化为液体油。

    Mining Oil
    ::开采石油

    The United States produces only about one-quarter as much oil as it uses. The main oil producing regions in the U.S. are the Gulf of Mexico, Texas, Alaska, and California.
    ::美国的石油产量只有其使用量的四分之一左右。 美国的主要产油区是墨西哥湾、得克萨斯州、阿拉斯加州和加利福尼亚州。 美国的主要产油区是墨西哥湾、得克萨斯州、阿拉斯加州和加利福尼亚州。

    Geologists look for oil in folded layers of rock called  anticlines  ( Figure   ). Oil moves through  permeable  rock and is trapped by the  impermeable  cap rock.
    ::地质学家们在折叠的岩石层中寻找石油,这些岩石被称为抗凝胶(图 ) 。 石油在渗透性岩石中移动,并被不可渗透的盖岩所困住。

    The structural trap of oil in folded rock layers.

     

    Oil (red) is found in the porous rock layer (yellow) and trapped by the impermeable layer (brown). The folded structure has allowed the oil to pool so a well can be drilled into the reservoir.
    ::石油(红)在多孔岩层(黄)中被发现,并被密不可透层(褐色)困住。 折叠结构使石油得以积聚,以便钻井进入储油层。

    Types of Oil
    ::石油种类

    Oil comes out of the ground as  crude oil . Crude oil is a mixture of many different  hydrocarbons . Oil is separated into different compounds at an oil refinery. This is done by heating the oil. Each hydrocarbon compound in crude oil boils at a different  . We get  gasoline , diesel, and heating oil, plus waxes, plastics, and fertilizers from crude oil.
    ::原油从地面出来,作为原油。原油是多种不同碳氢化合物的混合体。石油在炼油厂被分离成不同的化合物。这是通过加热石油实现的。原油中的每一种碳氢化合物都在不同的地方沸腾。我们从原油中获取汽油、柴油和供热油,加上蜡、塑料和化肥。

    These fuels are rich sources of energy. Since they are mostly liquids they can be easily transported. These fuels provide about 90% of the energy used for transportation around the world.
    ::这些燃料是丰富的能源来源,大部分是液体,因此很容易运输,这些燃料提供了全世界运输所使用的能源的90%左右。

    Gasoline
    ::汽油汽油

    Gasoline  is a concentrated resource. It contains a large amount of energy for its weight. This is important because the more something weighs, the more energy is needed to move it. If gasoline could only provide a little energy, a car would have to carry a lot of it to be able to travel very far. Or the car would need to be filled up frequently. So a highly concentrated energy resource is a practical  fuel  to power cars and other forms of transportation.
    ::汽油是一种集中的资源。 它含有大量重力。 这一点很重要, 因为重力越重, 移动它需要的能量越多。 如果汽油只能提供一点能量, 汽车必须携带大量能量才能走得越远。 或者汽车需要经常加满。 因此, 高度集中的能源是汽车和其他交通工具的实用燃料。

    Let's consider how gasoline powers a car. As gasoline burns, it releases most of its energy as heat. It also releases carbon dioxide gas and  water vapor . The heat makes the gases expand. This forces the pistons inside the engine to move. The engine makes enough power to move the car.
    ::让我们来想想汽油如何驱动汽车。作为汽油燃烧, 它释放了大部分能量作为热能。 它还释放了二氧化碳气体和水蒸气。 热能使气体膨胀。 这迫使发动机内的活塞动起来。 发动机使足够的动力来移动汽车。

    Using Oil
    ::利用石油

    Using gasoline to power automobiles affects the environment. The exhaust fumes from burning gasoline cause air pollution. These pollutants include smog and ground-level  ozone . Air pollution is a big problem for cities where large numbers of people drive every  day . Burning gasoline also produces carbon dioxide. This is a  greenhouse gas  and is a cause of  . Similar pollutants come from other forms of oil.
    ::燃烧汽油的废气造成空气污染,这些污染物包括烟雾和地面臭氧; 空气污染是每天有大批人驾车的城市面临的一个大问题; 燃烧汽油也产生二氧化碳; 这是温室气体, 也是造成这种污染的原因。 类似污染物来自其他石油形式。

    Summary
    ::摘要

    • Petroleum is a liquid fossil fuel. Petroleum is useful for vehicles because it is easily stored and transported.
      ::石油是一种液体化石燃料,对车辆有用,因为它易于储存和运输。
    • Petroleum is also used to make waxes, plastics, fertilizers, and other products.
      ::石油还被用来制造蜡、塑料、化肥和其他产品。
    • Using petroleum causes smog and global warming.
      ::利用石油造成烟雾和全球升温。

    Review
     ::回顾

    1. What makes petroleum unique among fossil fuels? Why is this unique property extremely important?
      ::是什么使得石油在化石燃料中具有独特性?为什么这一独特财产极为重要?
    1. Besides powering your car, what is petroleum used for?
      ::除了给你的汽车供电外,石油是用来做什么的?
    1. How does crude oil form?
      ::原油如何形成?

    Explore More
    ::探索更多

    Use the resource below to answer the questions that follow.
    ::利用以下资源回答以下问题。

    1. What produced the fossil fuels?
      ::化石燃料的产物是什么?
    1. What role does sediment play in petroleum formation?
      ::沉积物在石油形成中起什么作用?
    1. What is kerogen?
      ::什么是类固醇?
    1. How does oil get trapped so that we can drill to it?
      ::石油是如何被困住的? 这样我们才能钻探石油?
    1. How do we find oil?
      ::我们如何找到石油?
    1. How do we get the oil out of the ground?
      ::我们怎样才能把石油从地上挖出来?
    1. Why is drilling mud pumped down the pipe?
      ::为什么钻井的泥浆会从管子上抽下来?
    1. What are cuttings?
      ::什么是切口?
    1. What does the pumping unit do?
      ::抽水单位是做什么的?
    1. What happens at the refinery? What does fractional distillation produce?
      ::炼油厂发生什么了?
    1. What are petrochemicals used for?
      ::石油化工用什么用途?
    1. What other products are made from oil?
      ::石油有哪些其他产品?