Degrees Beaume may be converted to specific gravity by adding 130 to the Beaume degrees and dividing this by 140. Thus, if the hydrometer reading, when corrected for temperature, is 28.2° Beaume the specific gravity is obtained by adding 130, making 158.2, and dividing this sum by 140, or 0.885 as the specific gravity.
The physical qualities of petroleum have a wide range. It varies in color from colorless to yellow, green and black, dark brown and greenish brown predominating. Its consistency may be very thin and flowing, or thick and viscous to the point where it must be heated to make it flow. It solidifies at from 82° F. in some Burmah oils to zero in some Italian oils. The flash point, which is the lowest temperature at which inflammable vapors are given off, ranges with different oils from zero to 370° F. The boil ing point also has a wide range, from F. to 338° F.
The more important oils that go to make up its complex mix ture, and which are separated by distillation, are gasoline, benzine, distillates and kerosene, heavy naphthas and residuum. Paraffin base petroleums contain greater quantities of the lighter oils, illumi nants and lubricants, and are accordingly more valuable than those with an asphalt base. The latter are chiefly used for heavy fuel after such lighter constituents as they contain have been recovered.
While of course the greater portion of petroleum produced finds its way into use either for fuel or lubrication, the fact should not be overlooked that the uses to which it and its products can be ap plied are constantly extending. Several ingenious lamps are made
in which the vapors of either gasoline or ordinary kerosene are burned in incandescent mantles. Oil supplies the illuminating ele ment in the manufacture of water gas. Paraffin wax, vaseline, fur niture polish and many other by-products from different pe troleums, obtained by various methods of refining, are used com mercially and in the arts. Its use for water-proofing, mosquito prevention and as an insecticide are well known.
The Elmore process of ore treatment makes use of the affinity of oil for metals to treat finely crushed ore in an emulsion of water and oil in such a way as to cause the oil to form a film about the metallic particles, bringing these to the surface while the non metallic waste is drawn off below. The commercial development of the Diesel engine during the past few years, by which crude oil may be applied directly in internal combustion engines, gives prom ise of extensive use for petroleum for that purpose in the near future. An idea of the wide range of uses to which it is applied may be obtained from the statement that no less than 312 sep arate products are marketed from eastern crude oil, and the num ber derived from California crude oil is said now to be over two hundred.