Commercial form of oil (could be raw or slightly processed to match the trade specifications).
The most common characteristics used to identify the quality of a crude are its API gravity and its sulfur content.
Crude is considered sweet if sulfur content < 0.5 % and sour if sulfur content > 0.5 %.
Below are the popular examples of market crudes which set up the oil price benchmarks in exchange tradings:
| Synthetic crude | Light crude | Medium crude | Heavy crude |
|---|---|---|---|
| Syncrude Sweet Blend (API 30.5 – 33.6) | Pennsylvania Grade Crude Oil | Maya (API 21.8) |
See List of crude oil products for the more detailed list.
See also
Petroleum Industry / Upstream / Subsurface E&P Disciplines / Petroleum Geology / Petroleum fluids