Fuel oil

Fuel oil is a broad term that is used to describe a variety of petroleum derivatives which are used in boilers, furnaces or engines for the purposes of generating heat or powering vehicles. As such, kerosene, diesel, tractor fuel and marine fuel are all types of fuel oil.

Broadly speaking, different types of fuel oil are categorised based on the process in which they are distilled from crude oil and can be distinguished by physical characteristics such as viscosity, colouration and burning qualities.

Different types of fuel oil are produced by a process called fractional distillation, which separates crude oil into different weights and viscosities through a process of heating and cooling. At the low end of the spectrum are marine fuels, which have high boiling points and long atomic carbon chains, making them a less clean-burning fuel than fuel oils at the high end of the spectrum, such as kerosene.

Between these two fuel oils are middle distillate diesel fuel oil products, which have a variety of commercial and industrial uses. Diesel Engine Road Vehicle (DERV) fuel oil is the most common of these and is widely used to power a range of cars, vans and heavy goods vehicles.

Meanwhile, gas oil - also known as farm diesel, cherry diesel, tractor diesel, red diesel and 35 second oil - is used for a variety of agricultural purposes. Gas oil can be differentiated from DERV by its colouration, which leaves a reddish residue in engines.

In the UK, there is a robust distribution, delivery and bunker market for many different types of fuel oil. While the fishing industry calls upon refuelling stations in ports around the country, industrial, agricultural, commercial and residential customers can call upon the competitive delivery network to distribute all manner of fuel oils to sites throughout the UK.