Oil
Liquid fuels are combustible or energy-generating molecules that can be harnessed to create mechanical energy, usually producing kinetic energy; they also must take the shape of their container. It is the fumes of liquid fuels that are flammable rather than the fluid. Most liquid fuels in widespread use are derived from fossil fuels.
Crude oil is extracted from either offshore or onshore oil rigs. Onshore drilling refers to drilling deep holes under the earth’s surface whereas offshore drilling relates to drilling underneath the seabed.
Liquid fuel power plants make power available anywhere, anytime. Proven long-term reliability makes these plants suitable for stationary and floating baseload, and for stand-by applications. Usually Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO), High Speed Diesel (HSD) are used to drive generators to produce electricity.
Fractional distillation method is used to extract different liquid and gaseous fuels as well as heavy residue from crude oil. It is the separation of a mixture into its component parts, or fractions. Chemical compounds are separated by heating them to a temperature at which one or more fractions of the mixture will vaporize. It uses distillation to fractionate. Generally the component parts have boiling points that differ by less than 25 °C from each other under a pressure of 1 atm. If the difference in boiling points is greater than 25 °C, a simple distillation is typically used.
As per World Bank data, 4.09% of world’s total electricity is produced from oil sources.
According to current estimates, 81.5% of the world's proven crude oil reserves are located in OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) member countries, with the bulk of OPEC oil reserves in the Middle East, amounting to 65.5% of the OPEC total.
As per OPEC annual statistical bulletin published in 2017, 1216.76 billion barrels of crude oil (81.5%) are reserved in OPEC countries whereas 275.38 billion barrels (18.5%) are reserved in non-OPEC countries.
Advantages:
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Handling of liquid fuels is easy and they require less storage space.
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Liquid fuels can be fired easily and maximum temperature is attained in less time as compared to solid fuels.
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The combustion of liquid fuel is uniform therefore the change in load can be easily met by controlling the flow of fluid.
Disadvantages:
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They are costly as compared to solid fuels.
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They require special type of burners.
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In cold climate the oil stored in tanks has to be heated in order to avoid the stoppage of flow.
Applications
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Electricity generation by running various liquid fuels (HSD, HFO, and Furnace oil) operated generators.
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Jet fuel, kerosene for powering aircrafts.
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Gasoline, diesel, octane for powering ground transports and ships.
