Refinery facts for kids

Harvested sugar cane ready for processing.

A refinery is a production place that breaks down certain materials and makes raw material into products of value.

Types of refineries

Different types of refineries are as follows:

oil refinery, which changes crude oil into high-octane motor fuel (gasoline/petrol), diesel oil, liquefied petroleum gases (LPG), jet aircraft fuel, kerosene, heating fuel oils, lubricating oils, asphalt and petroleum coke;
sugar refinery, which changes sugar cane and sugar beets into crystallized sugar and sugar syrups;
natural gas processing plant, which purifies and changes raw natural gas into residential, commercial and industrial fuel gas, and also recovers natural gas liquids (NGL) such as ethane, propane, butanes and pentanes;
salt refinery, which cleans common salt (NaCl), made by the solar evaporation of sea water, followed by washing and re-crystallization;
metal refineries refining metals such as alumina, copper, gold, lead, nickel, silver, uranium, zinc, magnesium and cobalt;
vegetable oil refinery