Crude Oil and the Art of Oil Refining

Crude oil is a complex mix of hydrocarbons.

These are compounds consisting only of hydrogen and carbon.

Refining crude oil creates a plethora of products which can be broadly classified as light distillates, middle distillates, heavy distillates and other products.

Light ends/light distillates include:

• Fuel gases - methane, also propane and butane
• Naptha - a flammable liquid hydrocarbon mixture
• Gasoline (or petrol) - a high-volume, profitable product

Middle distillates include:

• Kerosene - widely used in aviation (formerly used profusely in lamp-lighting)
• Specific Fuel oils - e.g. diesel

Heavy distillates include:

• Heavy fuel oil - also known as bunker fuel or residual fuel oil, significantly more viscous than diesel
• Motor oil /engine oil
• Paraffin wax
• Tar
• Bitumen - an extremely viscous constituent of petroleum. In American English it is commonly called asphalt. Bitumen is also naturally occurring e.g. in the Pitch Lake in Trinidad and Tobago (bitumen is also known as pitch)

Juniper

Juniper is an ingredient of gin - it is the "dominant botanical" of gin.

Juniper "berries" (actually seed cones of the Juniperus communis) contain essential oils dominated by alpha-pinene, giving gin its piney, resinous aroma. On top of this, distillers layer other botanicals like coriander, citrus peel, angelica or orris.

The Upside Down Triangle Road Sign

An upside down triangle is the internationally used sign for "Yield" or "Give Way" as it is known in many countries. It means assess the situation and see if it is safe.  You are legally required to slow down and prepare to stop if needed. They sometimes have an additional box below e.g. Stop 100 yards to indicate where the Yield/Stop applies.

Guadalquivir River

This river goes through Seville. It means "big river" and is derived from Arabic "wadi al-Kabir". During the Roman period it was known as Betis.

Portuguese Postcodes

Portuguese post codes, known as codigo postal, consists of XXXX-XXX, with the last three digits specifying the building location.

Plaza de Espana, Seville

The Plaze de Espana was built in 1928 for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929.  It was designed by Anibal Gonzalez, and is an example of Regionalism architecture (an approach to architecture that seeks to root buildings in their geographical and cultural context).  Tiled alcoves represent the provinces of Spain.

Simply Red used it as a set for their video for "Something Got Me Started".

Lawrence of Arabia and Star Wars Episode II have also been filmed there.

It is located in the Maria Luisa Park (Parque de Maria Luisa), the gardens of which were designed by a French landscape architect, called Jean-Claude Nicolas Forestier, in 1914 (he also designed the Bois de Vincennes on the eastern edge of Paris, France). 

Mount Fuji

Mount Fuji is an active "stratovolcano" on the Japanese island of Honshu. Honshu is the largest island of Japan, where the capital Tokyo is also located.

It is the highest mountain in Japan at 3,776m. It is 100km south-west of Tokyo. 

Stratovolcanos have multiple layers from successive eruptions.