The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1916-03-16
NEW SOURCE GASOLINE
SOON TO Be UTILIZED
LARGE DEPOSITS OF sHALE IN
WYOMING AND UTAH PROVE
OF GREAT VALUE.

In view Of the ever increasing 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 inexhaustable supply of oil may
be obtained from the shale of north
western Colorado, northeastern Utah,
and southwestern Wyoming. This
shale contains materials which, when
heated, may be converted into crude
oil, gas, and ammonia. The high cost
of distilling oil from shale as COM
pared to the cost of producing oil from
wells has thus far prevented the de-
velopment in this country of such an
industry and may continue to prevent
it for some time, but sooner or later
this great source of supply will be ut
ilized to supplement the decreasing
production from the regular oil fields.
Oil From ShaIe.
The oil derived from the hsale is
similar to that which is being produc-
ed from wells in the United States at
the rate of more than 250,000,000 bar
rels a year. When refined by ordinary
methods the shale oil yields an aver
age of about 10 per cent gasoline, 35
per cent kerosene and a large amount
of paratffn. The yield of gasoline from
the shale may probably be largely in
creased by the use of refining methods
especially designed for that purpose.
The gas, which is a very good illum-
mating gas, will perhaps be sufficient
to furnish all the heat required to dis
till the crude oil from the shale.
The ammonia is most valuable by
product of the distillation and may be
utilized in the manufacture of com
mercial fertilizer or other nitrogen
compounds, 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 a bar
rel of oil to the ton of shale, and one
bed six 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 ten gal
Ions of gasoline by the present com
mercial methods of gasoline extrac-
ton, and larger yields may be made
possible by new methods.
Shale Oil In Scotland.
Little attention has been paid to this
shale because the quantity of petro-
Ieum produced from wells in the Unit
ed States has been sufficient to satisfy
all demands, but for more than so
years the oil shale industry of Scot
land has been very important one
In recent year more than 5000 men
were employed in the industry in that
country, 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 es-
timated that in Colorado alone there
is SuIHClenI Sndle, III DeuS IeeI OF
more thick and richer than the shale
being mined in Scotland, to yield 20
billion barrels of crude oil, from which
at least two billion barrels of gasoline
may be extracted by ordinary refinery
processes.
AS was stated in the recent reply of
Secretary Lane to senate resolution
on the subject of gasoline: 1.-THE de-
velopment of this enormous reserve
simply awaits the time when the price
of gasoline or the demand for other
distillation products warrants the util-
ization of this substitute source. This
may happen in the future. At all
events these shales are likely to be
drawn upon long before the exhaustion
of the petroleum fields"
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