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How much oil is used in manufacturing materials, though, rather than as energy? I suspect that's a small percentage.
by beat 8y ago
How much oil is used in manufacturing materials, though, rather than as energy? I suspect that's a small percentage.
- max76 8y agoI have low confidence in this answer, so I hope someone on the internet corrects me if I'm wrong. Oil is refined into many different byproducts. Some of the byproducts are used in manufacturing, and other byproducts are used in energy generation.
- antisthenes 8y agoAbout 12-13%, according to this: https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/index.php?page=oil_home https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/index.php?page=oil_home And most of that is lubricants and plastics. I think we can all agree that reducing our use of plastics is generally a good thing overall - we might make the switch back to more easily recyclable materials, e.g. aluminum and glass, which, although energy intensive to recycle, are almost endlessly renewable. Not sure what good substitutes for oil based lubricants would be.
- beat 8y agoThe primary problem with petroleum is greenhouse gasses, so I'm far less concerned about its use in plastics than I am in its use for fuel.