Changes in Oil Production Technology
The technology in the production oil has not been left behind in advancing as you will read more here. Considering the value of oil to our lives, it is suitable to review the changes that have followed its discovery. Traditionally, people in Mesopotamia used bitumen to make boats and hold earrings, necklaces, and bangles together. The pharaohs in Egypt used the substance to make the pyramids stand tall. Bitumen, asphalt and motor led to increased curiosity about oil among people.
The technique used to obtain oil on its discovery was by simply digging. At the time, oil was used as medicine and the Chinese also lit their lamps as well as warm their houses using this product. There was not much knowledge of oil and the people came up with myths about the earth releasing gases and liquids.
The next advancement in technology came in form of spring poles. This apparatus which was connected to a tree was made popular by the Ruffner brothers with the intention of reaching more salt deeper in the earth. The importance of oil was still not known to people at this time even though they knew it was a multipurpose commodity. When steam was introduced to provide energy for the spring pole for the extraction of salt the process became enhanced. A chemist at Yale by the name Benjamin Silliman discovered more about distillation of oil into Kerosene that could be used in lamps to provide lighting and even cook. It is at this point that the society became interested in the commodity and commercial drilling began.
As you learn more about how the demand for oil surged in this website. The number of oil deposits discovered in the earth increased. During the drilling process there were sediments that obstructed extraction of oil and the need for better machinery came up. As a result, a technique called rotary drilling was developed whose head penetrated the hard rock without the need to remove debris regularly. One historic moment was witnessed in Texas where a rig in Beaumont struck oil and it rose to the surface trickling like rain water. With the world war 1 coming around, the demand for oil rose, leading to increased competition which resulted in greater development of oil tools. The greatest achievement for the rotary drill was the ability to reach greater depths that the spring pole wouldn’t.
At the moment as we learn more here, rotary rigs are still in use for extracting oil. However, they are advanced technologically as they are fitted with digital tracking devices, touchpads and video control to monitor and access the rigs from a fur. As you will see here, the rigs are enhanced compared to the past. For example ,as you see here is that one rig can drill multiple oil wells and even move on their own.
Refer to: her explanation