Is Buton natural asphalt commercially viable?
Asphalt-like deposits found elsewhere in the world are either below water, of a quality not suitable for use in the road industry or are below the earth such that it can be mined, but at some expense, such as those found in the USA, called gilsonite. Asphalt in Buton island originates from crude oil in the depth that migrates upwards along deep seated faults and finally deposited asphalt vertically and laterally in the upper beds after the lighter fractions evaporate. In some places the light and heavy viscous asphalt are presently continuing oozing onto the exposed rock face on the surface.
