The course of oil processing can be divided into 3 steps:
- The separation of crude oil into fractions in which boiling point intervals are different (primary processing).
- The processing of the obtained fractions by chemical transformations of hydrocarbons contained therein and the production of raw material petroleum components (recycling).
- The mixing of components and, if necessary, the use of different additives to manufacture the commodity of petroleum products with the desired quality indicators (commercial production).