Texas Petroleum. Page: 23
102 p. : ill., maps, ports. ; 24 cm.View a full description of this book.
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TEXAS PETROLEUM.
A represents a girdle, or lateral, view of a living frustule of a Navicula,
showing the endochrome plates, valve markings and oil globules. The
size is 145x30 microns. A2 is the same view of a dead frustule of Navic-
ula with its contents disintegrating and valves falling apart, but with
the oil globules still present. The surface markings on the valves are
not shown.
B1 and 2 is a surface, or valve-side, view of living frustules of Pleu-
rosigma, showing endochrome plates and oil globules. Size 75x10
microns.
C is a surface, or valve-side, view of a living frustule of Navicula,
showing shape and size of endochrome plates, nucleus, oil globules, etc.
The chemical examination of the samples showed that there were only
two that contained any oil, viz., Nos. 4 and 9, both these samples coming
from the apex of the west jetty and the shore. UTnder the microscope, as
already observed, Specimen No. 4 showed no living diatoms, but occasion-
ally a dead diatom could be found whose shell included oil globules.
Specimen No. 9 under the microscope showed living diatoms which
contained oil globules. Inasmuch as Nos. 4 and 9 were evidently con-
taminated with crude Beaumont oil, which is known to contain sulphur,
they were not examined for this substance. The benzol extract of all
the other samples was evaporated and allowed to cool. On -cooling, sul-
phur separated out in the crystalline condition. The benzol extract of
these specimens showed no oil. It is to be concluded, therefore, that the
ooze from beneath the so-called oil pond does not contain oil, but does
contain organic compounds of sulphur and that the sulphur may be
crystallized out from solution in benzol.
We may have here the beginning of a deposit of sulphur or sulphur
compounds not necessarily in close association with oil,. but forming, pos-
sibly, a stratum above the oil and comparable in this respect to the
deposits known to overlie the oil in the Beaumont field. As the ooze
which contained the sulphur did not contain any living diatoms and as
the oil globules in the diatoms are separated from the shell upon the
death of the plant it would appear that the oil present in the diatom
while living had been diffused through the water or segregated in places
which were not located. The matter must be left for future investiga-
tion and there is no point in connection with the origin of petroleum and
sulphur deposits which merits more attention.
Dr. A. L. Metz, Tulane University, New Orleans, examined some mate-
rial obtained from the coast of Jefferson county, and communicates to
us, under date of July 1st, his results.
Sample No. 1 was a specimen of asphaltum (sea-wax) from the beach
due north of the oil pond. It contained:
Per cent.
Total bitumen ........................... 98.24
Organic matter other than bitumen .......... 1.44
Mineral matter .......................... 0.32
In this material there were no soluble salts and no free sulphur. The
bitumen extracted by carbon bisulphide yielded 5.30 per cent. of a vol-
atile inflammable oil, at a temperature of 2600 F.; besides 83.27 per cent.
of petrolene, 10.17 per cent. of asphaltene and 1.26 per cent. of retene.
At 750 F. the material could be easily indented; at 900 F. it did not23
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Phillips, William Battle. Texas Petroleum., book, July 1900; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth130185/m1/45/: accessed May 21, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .