The U.S. petroleum refining and distribution industry is a large and complex system:

• 150 refineries (owned by 60 companies) with aggregate crude oil processing capacity of 17.6 million barrels per calendar day
• 200,000 miles of crude oil and refined petroleum product pipelines
• 38 Jones Act vessels (U.S. flag ships which move products between U.S. ports)
• 3,300 coastal, Great Lakes and river tank barges
• 200,000 rail tank cars
• 1,400 petroleum product terminals
• 100,000 tank trucks
• 167,000 retail motor fuel outlets

Gasoline is the largest volume petroleum product, accounting for nearly half of U.S. petroleum product production. Highway (or on road) diesel represents 15 percent of the average production at a domestic refinery.

Chart describing typical refinery output

The refining industry responds to changes in demand and economics by adjusting processes and blending procedures to vary the yield of finished products. There are many different petroleum products. Fuels, nonfuel products and petrochemical feedstocks are petroleum product categories.

Fuels

Gasoline

Motor gasoline
Types: reformulated gasoline (RFG), gasohol, conventional gasoline
Grades: regular, middle and premium octane

Aviation gasoline

Distillate Fuel Oil

Diesel: low and ultra-low sulfur highway and low sulfur off-highway (or nonroad)
Off-highway examples: locomotives, ships, farm tractors, bulldozers, forklifts, underground mining equipment, backhoes, cranes

Home heating oil: space heating, electricity generation, crop drying, fuel for irrigation pumps on farms

Jet Fuel

Kerosene-type: commercial and Military Grades JP-5 and JP-8

Naphtha-type: Military Grade JP-4

Kerosene

Uses: space heating, cooking stoves, water heaters, lamp oil

Residual Fuel Oil

Uses: fire boilers to provide steam for heating or electricity generation, ships

Liquefied Refinery Gases (LRG)

Ethane/ethylene, propane/propylene, normal butane/butylene, isobutane/isobutylene

Uses: space heating, cooking

Still Gas or Refinery Gas

Use: a refinery fuel

Nonfuel Products

Asphalt

Lubricants

Uses: engine oil, gear oil, automatic transmission fluid

Petroleum Coke

Uses: carbon electrodes, electric switches

Road Oil

Uses: dust suppressor, surface treatment on roads, roofing, waterproofing

Solvents

Wax

Uses: chewing gum, candles, crayons, sealing wax, canning wax, polishes

Miscellaneous

Uses: cutting oil, petroleum jelly, fertilizers

Petrochemical Feedstocks

Examples: benzene, toluene, xylene, ethane, ethylene, propane, propylene, naphtha, gas oil

Uses: solvents, detergents, synthetic fibers, synthetic rubber, plastics, medicine, cosmetics

A mixture of hydrocarbons for use as an automotive (spark-ignition internal combustion engine) fuel. Key properties include aromatics content, benzene content, distillation percentages/temperatures, octane, olefins content, oxygen content, Reid vapor pressure, and sulfur content. Reformulated, oxygenated and low RVP (Reid vapor pressure) conventional are types of gasoline.

Gasoline specifications include ASTM D 4814 (Standard Specification for Automotive Spark-Ignition Engine Fuel) and EPA regulations in 40 CFR Part 80. In addition, many states have their own gasoline standards (Click here for NPRA’s summary of state and local gasoline and diesel fuel requirements).

The octane rating measures the anti-knock (uneven combustion) properties of motor gasoline.

A mixture of hydrocarbons for use as a heavy-duty truck (compression ignition engine) fuel. Key properties include aromatics content, cetane number/index, distillation temperatures, and sulfur content. Highway, off-road or nonroad (i.e., farm and construction), railroad and marine are types of diesel fuel.

Diesel fuel specifications include ASTM D 975 (Standard Specification for Diesel Fuel Oils) and EPA regulations in 40 CFR Part 80 and 40 CFR Section 69.51. In addition, a few states have their own diesel fuel standards (Click here for NPRA’s summary of state and local gasoline and diesel fuel requirements).

A mixture of hydrocarbons for use as a burner or furnace fuel and meets the specifications in ASTM D 396 (Standard Specification for Fuel Oils).

A general classification that includes diesel fuel and heating oil.

A mixture of hydrocarbons for use as a commercial and military aircraft fuel.

A relatively pure carbon residue.

42 U.S. gallons

In 2007,

	(million barrels/day)
Gasoline	9.3
Distillate Fuel Oil	4.2
Jet Fuel	1.6
Other finished petroleum products*	3.3
Total	18.5

* Includes residual fuel oil, naphtha and other oils for petrochemical feedstocks, lubricants, waxes, petroleum coke, asphalt and road oil, still gas and other miscellaneous products.

In 2007, domestic petroleum product demand was met by:

	(million barrels/day)
	Domestic Production	+ Imports	- Exports
Gasoline	9.0	0.4	0.1
Distillate Fuel Oil	4.1	0.3	0.2
Jet Fuel	1.4	0.2	0.0
Other finished petroleum products	3.4	0.7	0.8

Although 95% of total refined petroleum product demand is produced domestically, approximately 65% of the crude oil refined in the U.S. is imported from other nations.