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Origins of fossil fuels
Main oil and gas fields
Middle East
56%
Asia
2.5%
Eurasia
7%
North America
16%
Western Europe
1%
LatinAmerica
9%
Africa
8.5%
 © 2010 MCT
Most geologists believe oiland natural gas derive from the fossils of microscopic animalsand plants, such as algaeand plankton, that lived in lakes and seas millions of years agoAs of 2007
Much of N.A. reserves are located in oil sands in Alberta, Canada 
Almost one-fifth of U.S. reserves 
 – about 4 billion barrels – found in offshore fields in the Gulf of Mexico, most of that in deep water
Oil and gas are found in sedimentary rock;
 as they form, they rise through layers of porous rock; much of the world’s oil and gas disappears naturally through this process
A rock, a reservoir and a sealUnderwater reservoirs
Sometimes, oil and gas migration is blocked by a layer of impermeable rock, which acts like a seal
Hydrocarbons become trappedand accumulate in porous rock below, forming a hydrocarbon reservoirReservoirs, once discovered,can be turned into oil and gas fieldsSome of these reservoirs are located thousands of feet below the ocean floor
Anatomy of deep-water reservoirs: The Gulf of Mexico
Since rivers can carry large amounts of sediment offshore, many sedimentary basins formed near river deltas, such as the Mississippi Delta Where river sediments and coastal waters meet, the river slows down and sediment drops to the ocean floor; lighter particles can drift long distances before settling If sedimentary particles mix with organic debris, the process of forming hydrocarbons startsin the Gulf of Mexico, some of the oil and gas that formed is trapped by salt, rock-like crystalline structures, forming oil/gas reservoirsBeach extends from shore into oceanSteep drop ending in abyssal plains, 1.8-3 miles (3-5 km) below sea level
LandOceanOcean floorWater surfaceSaltSandstoneContinental shelfContinental drop
Can be flat or mountainous, with deep canyons and valleys; oil reservoirs found below this floor
Abyssal plains
Tiny marine life died and fell to the sea and lake floors; over time, it was covered with layers of sand and mud, forming a sedimentary basinOver millions of years, accumulated layers of sediment covered the decaying matter, burying it deeper and deeper Higher pressure and temperature nearer the Earth’s center transformed organic matter into hydrocarbons, long chains of carbon and hydrogen atomsTemperatures of 140 F to 212 F (60 C to 100 C) led to formation of crude oil, which contains larger hydrocarbons, such as hexane and octane
• Temperatures above 302 F (150 C)
helped transform oil into natural gas, which has smaller hydrocarbon molecules, such as methane, propane and butane
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Energy Training Resources, International Association of Oil and Gas Producers, Americian Petroleum Institute, Jackson School of Geosciences at University of Texas
What are proven reserves?
World total
1.3 trillion barrels
Estimated amounts of crude oil that can reasonably be recovered from known reservoirs
Proven reserves
U.A.E.RussiaLibyaNigeriaU.S.ChinaQatarBrazilAlgeriaMexicoAngolaNorwayU.K.IndiaVenezuelaKuwaitIraqIranCan.Saudi Arabia
Top countries,
in billions of barrels, 2009
Pacific Ocean Indian Ocean Atlantic Ocean 
2671781361151049998604436211615131211 9 7 6 3
An oil atlas
Petroleum, whose name comes from the Latin “petra,” or rock,and “oleum,” or oil, seeps naturally to the Earth’s surface along fault lines and cracks in rocks, where it pools. How oil forms and where it is found: 
OilGas
Charts show percent of world total by region
 
2134
Graphic: Pat Carr, Lee Hulteng
ReservoirsTrapped oil

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