How is crude oil used to make plastic
Plastic bags are made from crude oil, which is first heated to release ethylene gas. From there, the oil is converted to polyethylene, which is a gelatinous substance that is used to make the bags. This may not seem like a lot of oil, but it takes 12 million barrels of oil just to make enough plastic bags for America! The amount of fuel produced will depend on the type of plastic used, or other materials for that matter, like car tires. And lastly, no, you don't create more CO2 and pollution than was saved by the pyrolysis process, it actually produce a little less pollution than normal fuel from crude oil, and you get rid of plastic and other waste.