Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1916-03-16
GASOLINE FROM sHALE.

In view OF the eVer-lncreaSlng de-
mand for gasoline and the increase in
price of crude oil, from which it is OBJ
tanned, it is important to know that an
almost inexhaustible supply of oil may
be obtained from the shale of north
western Colorado, northeastern Utah,
and southwestern Wyoming. This shale
contains material which, when heated,
may be converted into crude oil, gas,
and ammonia. The high cost of dis
tilling oil from shade as compared to
the cost of producing oil from wells
has thus far prevented the develop
ment in this country of such an indus
try and may continue to prevent it for
some time, but sooner or later this
great source of supply be utilized to
supplement the decreasing production
from the regular oil fields.
The oil derived from the shale is
similar to that which is being produc-
ed from wells in the United States at
the rate of more than 50,000,000 bar
rels a year. When refined by ordinary
methods the shale oil yields an average
of about of about 10 per cent gasoline,
35 per cent kerosene, and a large
amount of paraffin. The yield of gaso-
line from the shale may probably be
largely increased by the use of refin-
ing methods especially designed for
that purpose. The gas, which is very
good illuminating gas, will perhaps
be sufficient to furnish all the heat re-
auired to distill the crude oil from the
shale.
The ammonia is most valuable by
product of the distillation and may be
utilized in the manufacture of CONNER
cial fertilizer of other nitrogen COM
pounds, as the market demands. The
United States Geological Survey has
examined large areas of the shale in
Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming and has
made many distillation tests. Some
beds of shale that are several feet
thick will yield more than barrel of
oil to the ton of shale, and one bed 9
inches thick will yield more than two
barrels of crude oil to the ton of shale.
One ton of this shale should therefore
yield nearly 10 gallons of gasoline by
the present commercial methods of
gasoline extraction, and larger yields
NAV be made possible by new methods.
Little attention has been paid to this
shale because the quantity or petrol ~um
produced from wells in the United
States has been sufficient to satisfy all
demands, but for more than so years
the oil shale industry of Scotland has
been very important one. In re-
cent wear more than 5000 men were
employed in the industry in that coun-
try, yet the average yield of oil per
ton of shale was much less than that
which appears possible from the shale
of Colorado and Utah. 1t is estimated
that in Colorado alone there is suffici-
emit shale, in beds 3 feet or more thick
and richer than the shale being mined
in Scotland, to yield twenty billion
barrels of crude oil, from which at least
two billion barrels of gasoline may be
extracted by ordinary refining process
| SEES. .
AS was stated in the recent reply OF
Secretary Lane to a Senate resolution
on the Subject of gasoline: "The dew
elopment of this enormous reserve sim.
ply awaits the time when the price OF
gasoline or the demand for other DIS
tillation products warrants the utllIza-
ton of this substitute source. rms
| NAV happen in the future. At all
| events these shales are likely to be
drawn upon long before the exhaus-
ton of the petroleum fields. -