Welcome to the Petroleum Industry Analysis Brief Web Site P etroleum is the single largest source of energy used in the United States. The nation uses two times more petroleum than either coal or natural gas and four times more than nuclear power or renewable energy sources. Before petroleum can be used it is sent to a refinery where it is physically, thermally, and chemically separated into fractions and then converted into finished products. Refineries also produce non-fuel products, including petrochemicals, asphalt, road oil, lubricants, solvents, and wax. The United States is the largest producer of refined petroleum products in the world, with 25 percent of global production and 163 operating refineries.
Petroleum refining is the largest industrial user of energy.
Texas, Louisiana, California, Illinois, and Pennsylvania are the nation's top producers of refinery products. Distillation, thermal and catalytic cracking, and reforming and alkylation are the workhorses of the industry. Return to Industry Analysis Briefs home page. Home page for Office of Industrial Technologies Home page for Energy Information Administration Return to home page for Manufacturing Energy Consumption Survey.