There have been significant changes in technology in the production of oil since its first production as you will read more here. Considering the value of oil to our lives, it is suitable to review the changes that have followed its discovery. In the past, in Ancient Mesopotamia bitumen a hardened substance was used in ship construction and holding jewelry together. The pharaohs in Egypt used the substance to make the pyramids stand tall. Bitumen, asphalt and motor led to increased curiosity about oil among people.
The technique used to obtain oil on its discovery was by simply digging. In this site you learn more about how the traditional people used oil to treat diseases, light lamps to increase visibility and keep warm. There was not much knowledge of oil and the people came up with myths about the earth releasing gases and liquids.
The technology that followed drilling was the use of spring poles. The device as you discover more here, was attached to a tree which provided the required resistance to reach greater depth, was used by the Ruffner brothers to enhance salt extraction. Despite a hint of the possible things oil could be used for at this time, oil was still not a necessity. However when steam power was introduced, the brothers were able to drill salt at a faster rate. A chemist at Yale by the name Benjamin Silliman discovered more about distillation of oil into Kerosene that could be used in lamps to provide lighting and even cook. It is at this point that the society became interested in the commodity and commercial drilling began.
From this website, you will read more about how the need for oil increased significantly. More oil deposits were also discovered deeper in the earth. However there were hard sediments that made drilling difficult hence the need for improved equipment. Thus the rotary whose drill head went deeper past the sediment without the need to clear the debris constantly was developed. The success of the rig was witnessed in Beaumont Texas where the drill hit a field and a lot of oil started flowing towards the surface. With the world war 1 coming around, the demand for oil rose, leading to increased competition which resulted in greater development of oil tools. The most important aspect of the rotary drilling method was to extract oil found very deep into the earth.
At the moment as we learn more here, rotary rigs are still in use for extracting oil. Even though the rotary rigs are still in use, they have been modified to today’s technology. As you will see here, the rigs are enhanced compared to the past. One such case is the increased mobility of the rig to extract oil from several oil wells.