Petroleum

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/petroleum

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is petroleum and where does it come from?Petroleum is a liquid made of hydrocarbons that forms deep underground from ancient plankton and algae that turned into oil over millions of years.
2. How do we find and get petroleum out of the ground?Scientists use seismic surveys to locate underground oil, then drill wells to pump it out, sometimes adding water or gas to help bring more oil.

Kerogen: A solid, insoluble organic matter in sedimentary rocks that can yield petroleum upon heating.
Fractional Distillation: A separation technique that exploits differences in boiling points to separate components of a liquid mixture like crude oil.
Petrochemicals: Chemical products derived from petroleum or natural gas, serving as building blocks for numerous industries.