GB2390044A - Preventing bitumen from adhering to surfaces - Google Patents

Preventing bitumen from adhering to surfaces Download PDF

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Publication number
GB2390044A
GB2390044A GB0211447A GB0211447A GB2390044A GB 2390044 A GB2390044 A GB 2390044A GB 0211447 A GB0211447 A GB 0211447A GB 0211447 A GB0211447 A GB 0211447A GB 2390044 A GB2390044 A GB 2390044A
Authority
GB
United Kingdom
Prior art keywords
bitumen
agent
ester
adhering
based products
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
GB0211447A
Other versions
GB0211447D0 (en
Inventor
Roger Norman Grey
Trevor Laity
Philip Chester
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
TRP SOLUTIONS Ltd
Original Assignee
TRP SOLUTIONS Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by TRP SOLUTIONS Ltd filed Critical TRP SOLUTIONS Ltd
Priority to GB0211447A priority Critical patent/GB2390044A/en
Publication of GB0211447D0 publication Critical patent/GB0211447D0/en
Publication of GB2390044A publication Critical patent/GB2390044A/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • CCHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C11ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
    • C11DDETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
    • C11D3/00Other compounding ingredients of detergent compositions covered in group C11D1/00
    • C11D3/16Organic compounds
    • C11D3/38Products with no well-defined composition, e.g. natural products
    • C11D3/386Preparations containing enzymes, e.g. protease or amylase
    • CCHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C11ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
    • C11DDETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
    • C11D7/00Compositions of detergents based essentially on non-surface-active compounds
    • C11D7/22Organic compounds
    • C11D7/26Organic compounds containing oxygen
    • C11D7/266Esters or carbonates
    • C11D2111/16

Abstract

A method of preventing bitumen and bitumen-based products from adhering to a surface, comprises spraying the surface with an agent comprising, as its active ingredient, an ester. The ester may be a methyl ester or ethyl ester or higher order ester. The ester is preferably of molecular composition C19H36O2 or methyl cis-9-octadecenoate of formula CH3 - (CH2)7 - CH = CH - (CH2)7 - CO2 - CH3. Apparatus for carrying out the method comprises a platform on which an operator may stand to afford access to a vehicle requiring treatment and a token-operated pump connected to deliver a predetermined quantity of agent to a spray head. Optically the agent may include an enzyme to accelerate decomposition thereof. The agent may also be used to clean bitumen from contaminated surfaces.

Description

- 1 - 2390044
PREVENTING BITUMEN FROM ADHERING TO SURFACES.
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to agents, especially useful for preventing bitumen 5 and bitumen-based products from adhering to surfaces. More particularly, the invention relates to such agents for use with equipment and vehicles coming into contact with bitumen and bitumen-based products. The invention also provides a method for applying the agent to a surface so as to prevent bitumen and bitumen-based products from adhering to the surface. The invention yet further provides apparatus especially designed for o carrying out the method and using such agents, particularly adapted for vehicles.
Background to the Invention
Vehicles and other equipment, such as shovels, spreaders and so on, that have been used to lay tarmac roadways, driveways, parking areas etc need to be cleaned after use. In the past, various compounds and techniques have been used for this purpose. Attempts have been made to prevent adherence of bitumen and bitumen-based products from surfaces. One such compound is diesel. It has the required properties of reducing adherence of bitumen *om surfaces on which it has been deposited, through use.
However, if not used in the correct manner and/or if not used in controlled amounts, diesel can be a hazard. Apart from the obnoxious smell, diesel can actually dissolve bitumen as so opposed to merely displacing it. This constitutes a big-hazard that has been recognised as such in the industry.
Diesel contaminated with dissolved bitumen and/or bitumen-based products, is environmentally unsafe to dispose of in the normal way. Moreover, modern-day tarmac/ asphalt compositions incorporating bitumen are stickier than their earlier counterparts and are inherently more difficult to displace using diesel or other proprietary cleaning agents.
This obviously causes more problems as regards safe usage and disposal of the relevant agents. Another agent that has been in use for some time is vegetable oil. It has obvious advantages in that it is not per se a bighazard, but its use is problematic. It is difficult to so spray (for example to clean vehicles, spreaders, hoppers and other large scale surfaces) and is not particularly efficient, with the result that large quantities have to be used to gain any real effect. There is also a risk to human operators in that application of the oil is by brush and involves the operator standing in and around the oil.
There is therefore a need for an agent that is uscr-*iendly, environmentally sale, economical and safe to use, and more effective than known agents and compositions containing such agents.
- 2 : Summary of the Invention
In a first aspect, the invention provides an agent for preventing bitumen and bitumen-based products from adhering to a surface, the agent comprising, as its active ingredient, an ester.
The ester may be methyl ester or ethyl ester or higher order ester such as propyl, butyl etc ester. Preferably, the ester is of molecular composition CgH36O2 or methyl cis 9-octadecenoate of formula CH3 - (CH2)7 - C! i - CH - (CH2)7 - C(12 - CHIN.
in a second aspect, the invention comprises a method of preventing bitumen and bitumen-based products from adhering to a surface, the method comprising spraying the o surface with an agent comprising, as its active ingredient, an ester.
In a third aspect, the invention provides apparatus for carrying out the above method, comprising a platform on which an operator may stand to afford access to a vehicle requiring treatment, a source of agent comprising as its active ingredient, an ester, and a token-operated pump connected to a spray head, whereby to deliver a predetermined quantity of said agent to said spray head.
Brief Description of the Drawings
The invention will be described with reference to the Drawings, in which: Figure I is a schematic representation of the mechanism involved in preventing bitumen from adhering to a surface; and so Figure 2 is a diagrammatic representation of a treatment station.
Detailed description of the Illustrated Embodiments
The agent forming the subject of the present invention works by a combination of chemical and physical mechanisms that provide significant friction-reducing capabilities between substrates. Two speed tic requirements for the most effective results are that the 2; static surface should be relatively smooth whilst being inclined at a minimum angle of declivity oi 22.5 , and the temperature of the flowing material should not exceed 170 C. Bitumen, even in its "raw" form is a complex blend of hydrocarbons. An exact analysis of its composition is not necessary to understand its rheology, lo the changes in its flow properties and other characteristics.
so For practical purposes, the chemical composition of bitumen is divided into four major categories: Asphaltenes: These are n-heptanes, insoluble brown or black amorphous solids.
l hey are often considered highly polar and complex aromatic molecules. Their presence in bitumen has a marked effect on its viscosity. The more they are present, the greater the viscosity and the hardness of the final product.
Resins: These molecules are soluble in n-heptanes. They are dark brown in colour, solid or semi-solid and very polar in nature. This polarity gives these molecules strong adhesive qualities. They also act as dispersing agents for Asphaltenes, helping to provide and maintain a homogeneous blend.
À 3 Aromatics: These molecules arc the major dispersing medium for Asphaltines and comprise the lowest molecular weight Naphthenic aromatic compounds. These viscous liquids are dark brown in appearance. They consist of non-polar carbon chains in which unsaturated aromatic rings predominate.
Saturates: Comprise straight and branch-chained aliphatic hydrocarbons with alkyl-napEthcnes and alkyl aromatics. 'hey are non-polar viscous oils, ranging from white to straw colour.
I'hcir principal properties are summarised in the following table: Product Segment % by Weight Molecular Weight I Polar/non-Polar lisphaltenes 6.7 11,300 Highly Polar Resins 19.8 1,270 Very Polar Aromatics 62.4 870 Non-Polar Saturates 9.6 835 Non-Polar Chemical Mechanisms: The end column in the above table shows whether the principal compositional segments of bitumen are polar or non-polar. This is important, as molecules that are polar are generally soluble in water and related molecules. This is best represented by imagining Z r' one o f these polar molecules surrounded by a cluster (in 3 dimensions) of water or other polar solvent molecules.
For non-symmetrical, non-polar molecules there is an uneven distribution of the negative electric charge on them. This effectively makes some parts of the molecule slightly negative and other parts slightly positive, allowing them to form weak bonds with ?.0 other non-polar molecules.
The inventive agent is itself preferably a collection of high molecular weight non-
polar aliphatic molecules, and will essentially only have a solubilising effect on the Aromatic and Saturate fractions of the bitumen. Because ol'thc high molecular weight of these molecules, the ratio of the purely hydrocarbon part to any functional groupings is ?.b also high. '['heir solubilising ability is therefore limited. In other words, they do not have properties that readily allow them to take into solution significant quantities of the relevant portions of bitumen. Therefore, when the agent of the present invention is used to pre-coat a surface that will be contacted by bitumen or bitumen-based products, not only will these products not adhere but the agent will not dissolve the bitumen to any significant degree.
30 This means that one of the problems of the prior art is immediately overcome by the
invention. Physical Mechanisms: This essentially involves laminar flow. In the situation where the agent is applied to a surface, in the short time that it is in contact with bitumen, the agent has a slight but
- 4 appropriate solubilising action. Under normal conditions of use, the surface will be inclined to the horizontal. Thc agent reduces the coefficient of sliding friction between the surface, which may be for example a static chute, and the bitumen or bitumen-based, mobile product required to be removed from the surface.
5 The manner of operation of'the agent on bitumen or bitumen-based product is illustrated schematically in Figure 1. An inclined surface 1, which could be the upper surface ova delivery chute in a hopper, spreader or other vehicle, is shown with a layer of solid bitumen 2 on its surface. The agent 3 has been sprayed or otherwise deposited onto the surface 1.
o The contact area between the pre-coatcd agent and the underside of the bitumen product leads to solubilising of the bitumen at 4 sufficiently for the contact area to become a liquid mixture 5, but not a solution, of the agent and the bitumen. This then acts as a "sliding bearing" for the solid bitumen or bitumen-based product on the surface. In consequence, the solid product simply slides off the surface and can be disposed of safely in accordance with current practice and legislation. The bitumen or bitumen-based product does not dissolve in the cleaning agent, so there are none of the environmental risks mentioned above in connection with the prior art.
Thc viscosity of a liquid, comprising a single molecular species between restrictive plates or through a tube, can be described mathematically and diagrammatically by so laminar flow equations. In the present case, however, there is a mixture of many different molecules and their isomers. The comparatively simple laminar flow equations would therefore not apply. IIowever, the basic logic still follows.
Reverting to Figure 1, the solubilised blend of agent and bitumen can be reasonably accurately represented as a series of liquid/semi-liquid layers sliding over one 25 another. The outermost layers flow more slowly than the central layers because there is more drag imposed on the outermost layers.
In the present invention, the layer nearest to the bitumen is likely to have the greatest concentration of bitumen to agent. Thc ratio will diminish in favour of the agent' the closer the approach to the sloping plate. All these layers of differing chemical so composition will also have varying viscosities but the ability remains for the layers to slide over each other, maintain the layers and allow the "load", i.e. the bitumen, to slide down the slope. Equally, the greater viscosity of the highest bitumen-to-agent concentration creates sufficient surface tension to maintain the film against an uneven surface, as is almost bound to be the case for the surface to be treated.
35 The active ingredient of the agent can be any ester, such as methyl ester, ethyl ester, propyl ester, butyl ester and so on. Whilst any ester will have some beneficial el'fect, it has to be recognised that the lower order esters are more usable in that they are more Plowable and therefore more amenable to spraying. Thc viscosity of higher order esters may make them less suitable in colder conditions or in colder climates.
5 - The preferred composition for the agent comprises a liquid, of which the main active ingredient is of molecular composition C9l-l36O2 or methyl cis-9-octadecenoatc of formula: CH3 - (CH2)7- CH = CH - (CH2)7 - CO2 - CH3
5 It iS a pale green liquid with little odour, insoluble in water but soluble in oil and alcohols. It is not listed as Hazardous waste. The viscosity of the agent needs to be sufficiently low that it can be sprayed and sufficiently high that it does not run off the treated surface, especially when that surface is inclined to the horizontal, as it would be in a hopper for a tarmac-laying vehicle, for example.
to 'l'he agent is preferably obtained from oil, such as cooking oil, or even used cooking oil. For example, methyl ester can be obtained by adding methyl alcohol to used cooking oil (mainly containing triglycerides) in the presence of sodium hydroxide catalyst.
The methyl ester separates out as a liquid, leaving a residue of solids and a base layer of glycerine. 'l'he methyl ester can readily be drawn off.
is Figure 2 illustrates, diagrammatically, a treatment station, which may conveniently be located in a depot or other supply point for bitumen or bitumen-based products. The station includes a platform or similar structure 2() at a height where an operator can safely work in a position to reach an area to be treated. As illustrated, a wagon 21 is shown at the cleaning station. A surface 22 is shown at an inclined angle in readiness for treatment. On 20 the platform 20 is a pump 23 connected to a hose 24 and lance 25 assembly so that the operator can reach the furthest points of the wagon 21 *om the platform in order to apply the agent by a spray 26 emanating from the end of the lance 25. Alternatively, the pump can be located at ground level and only the lance made available at the height of the pJatforrn. In order to ensure that the correct quantity of agent is applied to the surface, the 2 pump is preferably arranged to operate on a token or similar system for a fixed duration.
Of course, the duration may be adjustable to suit the size of the surface to be cleaned.
['here will also be appropriate safety rails etc around the platform.
In order to enhance the biodegradability ol'the agent, enzyme(s) may be added to the agent. For example, in the treatment method and apparatus previously described, a 30 separate supply of enzyme(s) may be mixed with the agent at or near the point of delivery of the agent from the spray head.
The invention therefore provides an effective, economical and ecologically safe system for prc-treating surfaces that will become contaminated with bitumen or bitumen based products so as to prevent them adhering to the surface. The invention is also useful : as a cleaning agent for removing bitumen and bitumen-based products from contaminated surfaces.

Claims (11)

- - Claims
1. A method of preventing bitumen and bitumen-based products from adhering to a surface, the method comprising spraying the suri;ace with an agent comprising, as its s active ingredient, an ester.
2. A method as claimed in Claim I, wherein said ester is selected from the group consisting of a methyl ester or ethyl ester or higher order ester.
3. A method as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said ester is of molecular composition C9H36O2 or methyl cis-9-ocladecenoate of formula CHIN - (CH2) 7 - CH = CH - (Cl12)7 o CO2 - CH3.
4. A method as claimed in any of Claims 1 to 3, wherein an enzyme is added to the agent at or near the point of delivery of the agent.
5. Apparatus for carrying out the method of Claim 1, comprising a platform on which an operator may stand to afford access to a vehicle requiring treatment, a source of agent comprising as its active ingredient, an ester, and a token-operated pump connected to a spray head, whereby to deliver a predetermined quantity of said agent to said spray head.
6. An agent for preventing bitumen and bitumen-based products from adhering to a surface, the agent comprising, as its active ingredient, an ester.
7. An agent as claimed in Claim 6, wherein the ester is selected from the group o consisting of a methyl ester or ethyl ester or higher order ester.
8. An agent as claimed in Claim 6, wherein the ester is of molecular composition C'H3602 or methyl cis-9-octadecenoate of formula CH3 - (CH2)7 - CH = CH - (CH2)7 CO2 - CH3.
9. A method of preventing bitumen and bitumen-based products from adhering to a; ?5 surface, substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
I 0. Apparatus for carrying out the method of Claim 97 substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
11. An agent for preventing bitumen and bitumen-based products from adhering to a surface, substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
GB0211447A 2002-05-20 2002-05-20 Preventing bitumen from adhering to surfaces Withdrawn GB2390044A (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB0211447A GB2390044A (en) 2002-05-20 2002-05-20 Preventing bitumen from adhering to surfaces

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB0211447A GB2390044A (en) 2002-05-20 2002-05-20 Preventing bitumen from adhering to surfaces

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
GB0211447D0 GB0211447D0 (en) 2002-06-26
GB2390044A true GB2390044A (en) 2003-12-31

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Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4674622A (en) * 1985-08-14 1987-06-23 Bridgestone Corporation Conveyor belt
US5407490A (en) * 1990-06-15 1995-04-18 Zofchak; Albert Method for releasing black top or other sticky materials from a truck bed
US5720825A (en) * 1996-01-29 1998-02-24 Chemtek, Incorporated Method of cleaning tar and asphalt off of paving or other equipment using combinations of esters and terpenes
EP0982382A1 (en) * 1998-08-25 2000-03-01 Wacker-Chemie GmbH Asphalt release agents and use thereof
US6126757A (en) * 1998-03-16 2000-10-03 Chemtek, Inc. Method of releasing asphalt from equipment using surfactant solutions

Patent Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4674622A (en) * 1985-08-14 1987-06-23 Bridgestone Corporation Conveyor belt
US5407490A (en) * 1990-06-15 1995-04-18 Zofchak; Albert Method for releasing black top or other sticky materials from a truck bed
US5720825A (en) * 1996-01-29 1998-02-24 Chemtek, Incorporated Method of cleaning tar and asphalt off of paving or other equipment using combinations of esters and terpenes
US6126757A (en) * 1998-03-16 2000-10-03 Chemtek, Inc. Method of releasing asphalt from equipment using surfactant solutions
EP0982382A1 (en) * 1998-08-25 2000-03-01 Wacker-Chemie GmbH Asphalt release agents and use thereof

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Publication number Publication date
GB0211447D0 (en) 2002-06-26

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