Flow diagram of typical refinery

The image below is a schematic flow diagram of a typical oil refinery that depicts the
various unit processes and the flow of intermediate product streams that occurs between
the inlet crude oil feedstock and the final end products. The diagram depicts only one of
the literally hundreds of different oil refinery configurations. The diagram also does not
include any of the usual refinery facilities providing utilities such as steam, cooling
water, and electric power as well as storage tanks for crude oil feedstock and for
intermediate products and end products.[1][4][5][6]
Schematic flow diagram of a typical oil refinery

There are many process configurations other than that depicted above. For example, the
vacuum distillation unit may also produce fractions that can be refined into endproducts
such as: spindle oil used in the textile industry, light machinery oil, motor oil, and steam
cylinder oil. As another example, the vacuum residue may be processed in a coker unit to
produce petroleum coke.

Asphalt (or Bitumen) is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is
present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits. Until the 20th century, the
term asphaltum was also used.[1] It is most commonly modelled as a colloid, with
asphaltenes as the dispersed phase and maltenes as the continuous phase (though there is
some disagreement amongst chemists regarding its structure).[citation needed] One writer
states that although a "considerable amount of work has been done on the composition of
asphalt, it is exceedingly difficult to separate individual hydrocarbon in pure form", and
"it is almost impossible to separate and identify all the different molecules of asphalt,
because the number of molecules with different chemical structure is extremely large".

Butane is a gas with the formula C4H10, that is, an alkane with four carbon atoms. The
term may refer to any of two structural isomers, or to a mixture of them: in the IUPAC
nomenclature, however, butane refers only to the unbranched n-butane isomer; the other
one being called "methylpropane" or isobutane.

Petroleum coke (often abbreviated Pet coke or petcoke) is a carbonaceous solid derived
from oil refinery coker units or other cracking processes.[1] Other coke has traditionally
been derived from coal.

Sulfur or sulphur is the chemical element that has the atomic number 16. It is denoted
with the symbol S. It is an abundant, multivalent non-metal. Sulfur, in its native form, is a
bright yellow crystalline solid. In nature, it can be found as the pure element and as
sulfide and sulfate minerals. It is an essential element for life and is found in two amino
acids: cysteine and methionine. Its commercial uses are primarily in fertilizers, but it is
also widely used in black gunpowder, matches, insecticides and fungicides. Elemental
sulfur crystals are commonly sought after by mineral collectors for their brightly colored
polyhedron shapes. In nonscientific contexts, it can also be referred to as brimstone.

Liquefied petroleum gas (also called LPG, GPL, LP Gas, or autogas) is a flammable
mixture of hydrocarbon gases used as a fuel in heating appliances and vehicles. It is
increasingly used as an aerosol propellant and a refrigerant, replacing
chlorofluorocarbons in an effort to reduce damage to the ozone layer.

Jet fuel is a type of aviation fuel designed for use in aircraft powered by gas-turbine
engines. It is clear to straw-colored in appearance. The most commonly used fuels for
commercial aviation are Jet A and Jet A-1 which are produced to a standardized
international specification. The only other jet fuel commonly used in civilian turbine-
engine powered aviation is Jet B which is used for its enhanced cold-weather
performance.