JP2008537013A - Additive for hydrocarbon fuel comprising non-acidic inorganic compound containing boron and method for producing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

  The present invention provides fuel additives and methods of using and making fuel additives. The fuel additive includes a non-acidic boron-containing salt in the carrier fluid. This fuel additive enhances combustion performance by improving fuel efficiency or reducing pollutant emissions in exhaust gases resulting from burning fuel with fuel additive.

Description

  This application relates to US Provisional Patent Application No. 60 / 673,907, filed on April 22, 2005, the title of the invention “Additives for Hydrocarbon Fuels Containing Boron-Containing Non-acidic Inorganic Compounds and Processes for Producing the Same”, Claim its priority and benefits. The entire text of this provisional patent application is incorporated herein by reference.

  The present invention relates to the field of fuel additives, and in particular to boron-containing additives for hydrocarbon fuels used to improve efficiency and / or reduce pollution.

  Many hydrocarbon fuels are used, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. Examples of such fuels include gasoline, natural gas, diesel, kerosene, jet fuel, LPG, heavy distillate, bunker heavy oil, ethanol, coal, and other solid hydrocarbon fuels. Over the past century, chemical compounds have been used as fuel additives to improve various parameters, such as octane number, of various fuels. It is known that lead has been used in gasoline for a long time and was subsequently banned. Tetraethyllead had a positive effect on the octane number and a markedly negative effect on the environment.

  In addition to tetraethyllead, several elements are known to exhibit combustion catalytic properties in gasoline or other hydrocarbon fuels. Examples include magnesium, iron, copper, cerium, calcium and barium in addition to lead. Each of these elements has advantages and disadvantages in certain applications. Disadvantages of certain iron compounds are limited solubility, toxicity, and expensive additives for gasoline. In addition, interaction with sulfur and precipitation of sulfides may occur, which is undesirable.

  Another additive commonly used for gasoline is MTBE. This compound significantly increases the octane level but is considered carcinogenic. Also, since this compound mixes easily with water, there must be a risk of leakage. MTBE-containing gasoline leaking from underground tanks at gas stations can potentially reach groundwater and contaminate wells. As a result of the anticipated potential negative effects of MTBE on the environment, ethanol is being evaluated as a gasoline additive that boosts the octane number.

  In addition to improving the industry's goal of improving combustion efficiency, reducing smoke and particulate emissions is also a concern, particularly in diesel fuel applications. The industry has failed to make substantial progress in developing fuel additives for reducing soot and particulate emissions.

  Finally, the combustion parameters are adjusted in an attempt to maximize the ability to reduce CO and NOx. Although these attempts and combinations of these attempts have been made to minimize pollutants, fuel combustion is still of interest for improving fuel efficiency and reducing pollutants.

  Fuel additives including combustion catalysts for reducing soot and particulate emissions from buses, trucks and automobile engines operating on gasoline fuel would be advantageous. Also, for diesel fuel applications, fuel additives that improve efficiency and / or reduce pollutants would be advantageous. It would be advantageous to reduce soot, particulates and nitrogen emissions from fuel applications. Also, an additive that does not produce a precipitate would be advantageous. Also, hydrocarbon fuel additives that reduce the level of produced NOx would be advantageous. Finally, additives that maintain stability during the combustion process may be advantageous.

Accordingly, the present invention is a fuel additive comprising a mixture of at least one salt and a carrier fluid, wherein the salt is [Y] _a B _b O _c , where Y is a cation and the salt is non-acidic ), The carrier fluid acts to maintain salt in the carrier fluid in an at least partially dispersed state, a fuel additive is added to contact the fuel in the combustion zone, and combustion When activated, enhanced performance combustion is evaluated by increased fuel efficiency or reduced pollutant emissions in exhaust gases resulting from combustion of fuel and fuel additives. A fuel additive is provided. A feature of the present invention is that [Y] is an ammonium compound. Alternatively, [Y] is an alkali metal.

Also advantageously, the present invention is a method for enhancing the fuel performance of a hydrocarbon fuel in a combustion system having a combustion zone, wherein a fuel additive comprising a mixture of at least one salt and a carrier fluid is supplied to the combustion zone. Wherein the salt comprises an effective amount of [Y] _a B _b O _c (wherein Y is a cation and the salt is non-acidic) to enhance fuel performance, And a method of combusting a hydrocarbon fuel with a fuel additive. A feature of the present invention is that the fuel may be a solid or liquid hydrocarbon fuel.

The present invention includes fuel additives and methods of using the additives associated with hydrocarbon fuels. The fuel additive of the present invention preferably contains a salt containing boron, and this salt contains [Y] ₂ B ₄ O ₇ (Y is a cation). Ammonium is a preferred inorganic cation. Alkali metals are another preferred inorganic cation, and those alkali metals having an atomic weight of less than 50.0 are more preferred.

  In one embodiment, the boron salt is at least partially dispersed in water or another aqueous fluid to form a boron-containing parent dispersion. Boron salts are dispersed in water or aqueous fluids and no salt dissociation or dissolution occurs. A stable dispersion of boron salt, with a preferred particle size of 5 microns or less, more preferably 2 to 5 microns, provides a combustion catalyst consisting of different parts in a hydrocarbon fuel, which contributes to the emission of emissions to the atmosphere. Reduces and improves fuel efficiency.

  In one embodiment of the present invention, a boron-containing parent dispersion was added to the dispersion fluid and mixed. The dispersion fluid is a fluid that acts to maintain the salt at least partially dispersed in the dispersion fluid and is miscible with the hydrocarbon fuel or can be maintained in solution. In a preferred embodiment, for example, water is removed in bulk from the boron-containing parent dispersion in the dispersion fluid by thermal means to create a fuel additive. The dispersion fluid is preferably a Group II base oil. Other preferred dispersion fluids are light hydrocarbons, gasoline, polygas, kerosene, diesel, naphtha gas oil, group I, III, IV, V, or VI base oil as defined by API, aromatic oil, polybutene, polyglycol, Contains heavy oil or mixtures thereof.

  The fuel additive acts to enhance combustion performance when placed in contact with the fuel, regardless of the sulfur content of the fuel. Enhanced performance combustion improves fuel efficiency, or reduces pollutant emissions in the exhaust gas generated from combustion, or their effects when compared to fuels without fuel additives Means a combination of Typical pollutants can include NOx, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, and other recognized pollutants generated from the combustion of hydrocarbon fuels. It is noted that different geographic areas focus on minimizing specific pollutants that depend on air characteristics. It would be highly advantageous to reduce target contaminants or combined contaminants such as NOx and CO. Alternatively, increasing fuel efficiency results in a reduction in the total volume of pollutants as well as an economic taste.

When a fuel additive is prepared using an ammonium compound, the ammonium compound is defined as a compound containing NR _x , where R can be, for example, hydrogen. NH ₄ is particularly preferred. Ammonium compounds have been found to exhibit particularly strong catalytic combustion properties when used in boron-containing salts according to the present invention, for example in the context of NOx reduction.

  Borate is neutral in nature and more specifically is not highly acidic. In a preferred embodiment, the boron-containing parent dispersion has a pH between about 6.0 and 8.0. Typically, boric acid is not present in this relatively neutral pH range. For example, pentaborate and tetraborate are disclosed herein. The borate can be in any form including metaborate, orthoborate, or any form of borate that is not acidic, or combinations thereof. The salt can be anhydrous or various levels of hydrates. Preferred boron salts according to the invention are inorganic, non-acidic, insoluble and dispersible.

  The boron-containing parent dispersion of one embodiment of the present invention can be used in any type of environment, for example, either a hydrophilic or hydrophobic environment. In the case of a hydrophobic environment, it must be necessary that the carrier fluid be selected with appropriate dispersion in mind. In a preferred embodiment, the carrier fluid is polyoxypropylene monool, diol and polyol, polyoxybutylene monool, diol and polyol, especially Bayer Actaclear ND17. Preferred embodiments also include a dispersant used in connection with the carrier fluid to make the fuel additive. Preferred dispersants include polyalkenyl succinimides such as Texaco TFA4690C, Oronite ODA78012, and Ethyl Hitech 646. For liquid hydrocarbon fuel applications, preferably the at least one carrier fluid may be a fluid having at least some hydrophilic properties, which fluid is miscible with the fuel and associated with the dispersant. Acts as an admixture.

The fuel additive of the present invention is useful for enhancing combustion performance, and more complete combustion is achieved when compared to combustion of fuel without the fuel additive, and CO ₂ and H ₂ O emissions from combustion. The amount increases. The result is an incompletely burned product as well as a reduction in NOx, thereby improving fuel efficiency.

  The fuel additive is used by adding the additive to the fuel in an amount effective to improve fuel efficiency and / or reduce pollutants. The term enhanced performance and enhanced performance combustion refers to any of these effects. An example of pollutant reduction is the reduction of NOx and CO in exhaust gas produced from an internal combustion engine or a direct combustion open frame burner. Advantageously, both these effects are observed with the addition of the fuel additive of the present invention. Preferred embodiments include adding between about 5 and 10 ppm by weight boron to the fuel by adding a fuel additive. Similarly, increasing the amount of boron up to 25 ppm by weight is effective. It is noteworthy that very cost effective solutions can be prepared with low weight percent boron, ie less than 20 ppm boron. Another preferred target is less than 15 ppm boron. The relatively low concentration of boron advantageously provides economic advantages, is more environmentally acceptable, and can provide a cleaning action in the engine to reduce deposits and residues. .

  The present invention includes a method for enhancing the fuel performance of a hydrocarbon fuel in a combustion system. The method includes supplying an effective amount of the above fuel additive to the hydrocarbon fuel to enhance fuel performance, and combusting the hydrocarbon fuel with the fuel additive. The combustion system can be any means known to those skilled in the art related to hydrocarbon combustion. The combustion system can include any of a variety of internal combustion engines. In a preferred embodiment, the method is used with a liquid or liquefied hydrocarbon fuel. Alternatively, the method can be used with a solid hydrocarbon fuel. The result of adding an additive to the hydrocarbon fuel is a fuel with enhanced performance containing a substantial amount of hydrocarbon fuel suitable for combustion and an amount of fuel additive that acts to enhance combustion performance. Become. Preferably, the enhanced performance fuel reduces atmospheric emissions and efficiency when burning enhanced performance fuel compared to combustion of hydrocarbon fuels that do not contain fuel additives. Contains an amount of boron which acts to improve the. More preferably, the enhanced performance fuel contains between about 5 and 10 ppm by weight boron. Similarly, increasing the amount of boron up to 25 ppm by weight is effective. It is noteworthy that very cost effective solutions can be prepared with low weight percent boron, ie less than 20 ppm boron. Another preferred target is less than 15 ppm boron.

  Another embodiment of the present invention is a method for enhancing the fuel performance of a hydrocarbon fuel in a combustion system, comprising adding to the hydrocarbon fuel an effective amount of a chemical additive composition that enhances the fuel performance. Is the method.

  A chemical additive composition, also called a dispersion fluid, can be made by making an intermediate aqueous parent dispersion by dispersing borate in water. The next step involves combining the aqueous boron-containing parent dispersion with the carrier fluid in the presence of various dispersants, surfactants, etc., and subsequently removing the water to create a boron-containing dispersion fluid. .

  The parent solution, or boron-containing dispersion fluid of the present invention can be added to or include a combustion fuel. Again, it must be advantageous to include a dispersant to promote dispersion in the hydrocarbon-based fuel. Typical fuels are kerosene, diesel fuel, and residual fuel.

  A substantial amount of fuel suitable for combustion is an effective amount of boron-containing parent dispersion to reduce atmospheric emissions or improve efficiency when burning fuel with enhanced performance Or, when combined with a chemical additive composition, a fuel with enhanced performance is created. Diesel and gasoline are examples of fuels suitable for combustion. Also included are other hydrocarbon fuels useful for combustion in combustion engines. In some circumstances, the dispersion fluid is some type of target fluid, i.e., a fluid containing the desired fuel.

(Preparation of boron-containing aqueous parent solution)

83.5 g ammonium pentaborate octahydrate (NH ₄ B ₅ O ₈ 8H ₂ O, molecular weight 544.3 g / mol) was charged and added to 417.7 g deionized water. The mixture was heated with stirring at 80 ° C. until all of the salt was dispersed. This solution remained clear at 80 ° C. and contained 1.8 wt% boron.

(Preparation of boron-containing dispersion fluid)

  In a 4 liter Erlenmeyer flask, to a 1200 g mineral oil base stock was added 90 g Lubrizol 400A, a standard additive package containing a mixture of dispersants, and 180 g kerosene. This mixture was stirred at room temperature until a clear solution was obtained. To this oily solution, 166.0 g of the boron-containing parent dispersion prepared in Example 1 was added. The two solutions were mixed using a high-speed hand mixer to prepare a W / O type emulsion. The emulsion was transferred to a 3 liter round bottom flask equipped with a stirrer and a Dean-Stark trap with condenser. The mixture was heated to a temperature of up to 150 ° C. with stirring for about 1 hour. What was obtained was a borate dispersion in an oil matrix. The final moisture content was 6,480 ppm and the final theoretical boron content was 1,827 ppm.

(Preparation of treatment agent for 2-cycle engine fuel containing boron)

  Mixing the boron-containing dispersion fluid of Example 2 with Tufflo 6036, a standard additive package containing various surfactants and dispersants, for dilution with gasoline and use as a two-cycle engine fuel. A suitable lubricating oil was prepared and the final boron content was about 300 ppm. Fuel was then added to this mixture in a 50: 1 ratio to provide a final boron content of about 6 ppm.

(Home Light Yard Bloom II Leaf Blower Test)

  The Homelight Yard Bloom II Leaf Blower is a portable blower using a 30cc 2-cycle gasoline engine. Leaf blowers are used to review improvements in engine efficiency, particularly fuel savings. To set the baseline, standard homelight two-cycle oil was mixed with 87 octane regular unleaded gasoline in a 50: 1 ratio. Exactly 250 milliliters of the fuel mixture was added to the leaf blower fuel tank. The engine was then run at full speed until all the fuel was consumed and the engine stopped. Operating time, rotation speed, and exhaust temperature were measured and recorded. The test was repeated using the boron-containing oil obtained in Example 3 at a dilution ratio of 50: 1 and a boron content of about 6 ppm. The result was a 2.3% increase in rotation speed, a 6.5% decrease in exhaust air temperature, and a 11.8% increase in operating time. These values illustrate the significant improvement in engine operating efficiency with the boron-containing oils of the present invention.

(Diesel fuel burning in open frame)

  CO emissions were measured using an open frame burner using diesel fuel. A baseline was established by burning an untreated diesel at a specific, controlled fuel and air mixing ratio. For this test, the fuel: air mixture ratio was not changed. The boron dispersion fluid obtained in Example 2 was high sulfur No. Diluted to 20 ppm boron concentration using 2 diesel. This mixture was then used to fuel the burner and a 11.5% CO reduction was measured through 14 measurement points.

Claims (20)

A fuel additive comprising a mixture of at least one salt and a carrier fluid, wherein the salt comprises [Y] _a B _b O _c , wherein Y is a cation and the salt is non-acidic, The fluid acts to maintain salt in the carrier fluid in an at least partially dispersed state, the combustion performance when the fuel additive is added in contact with the fuel in the combustion zone and burned Is characterized by increased fuel efficiency or reduced pollutant emissions in the exhaust gas resulting from the combustion of fuel and fuel additives. Fuel additive.   The fuel additive according to claim 1, wherein the salt is selected from the group consisting of metaborate, pentaborate, tetraborate, orthoborate, and combinations thereof. The fuel additive according to claim 1, further comprising [NH ₄ ] ₂ B ₄ O ₇ .   The fuel additive according to claim 1, further comprising an ammonium compound.   The fuel additive according to claim 1, wherein the pH of the solution is between about 6.0 and 8.0.   The fuel additive according to claim 1, wherein the salt is inorganic.   A method for enhancing the fuel performance of a hydrocarbon fuel in a combustion system having a combustion zone, the method comprising supplying the fuel additive of claim 1 to the combustion zone in an amount effective to enhance fuel performance; Combusting a hydrocarbon fuel with a fuel additive.   8. The method for enhancing fuel performance according to claim 7, wherein the hydrocarbon fuel is a liquid hydrocarbon fuel.   The method for enhancing fuel performance according to claim 7, wherein the hydrocarbon fuel is a solid hydrocarbon fuel.   8. The method of enhancing fuel performance according to claim 7, wherein the combustion zone is in an engine operating with gasoline fuel.   8. The method of enhancing fuel performance according to claim 7, wherein the combustion zone is in an engine operating with diesel fuel.   Fuel additive is added in contact with the fuel in the direct combustion burner or open frame of the combustion zone and acts to enhance combustion performance when burned and combustion with enhanced performance 8. The method of enhancing fuel performance according to claim 7, wherein is evaluated by an increase in fuel efficiency or a decrease in pollutant emissions in exhaust gas resulting from combustion of fuel and fuel additive.   A fuel with enhanced performance comprising a substantial amount of hydrocarbon fuel suitable for combustion and an amount of fuel additive according to claim 1 which acts to enhance combustion performance.   The enhanced performance fuel of claim 13, wherein boron is present in the hydrocarbon fuel in an amount between about 5 and 10 ppm by weight.   When burning fuel with enhanced performance, the amount of fuel additive acts to reduce emissions into the atmosphere compared to burning hydrocarbon fuel without fuel additive 14. A fuel with enhanced performance according to claim 13.   The enhanced performance fuel of claim 13, wherein the boron is present in the hydrocarbon fuel in an amount less than about 25 ppm by weight.   A method for producing an enhanced performance hydrocarbon fuel for use in a combustion system, the method comprising the step of adding to the hydrocarbon fuel an effective amount of a chemical additive composition that enhances fuel performance, the method comprising: A process wherein the additive composition comprises a product obtained from a dispersion of non-acidic borate in water.   The method according to claim 17, wherein the salt is inorganic. A method for producing a fuel additive for enhancing the combustion performance of a hydrocarbon fuel, comprising:
A salt [Y] _a B _b O _c (wherein Y is a cation and the salt is non-acidic) is added to the fluid to at least partially disperse the salt in the fluid to contain boron. Creating a parent dispersion,
Mixing the boron-containing parent dispersion with the carrier fluid such that the boron-containing parent dispersion is generally dispersed in the carrier fluid; and mixing the boron-containing parent dispersion with the carrier fluid. Removing a substantial portion of the fluid from the fuel to produce a fuel additive that is added to a combustion zone where hydrocarbon fuel is present and acts to enhance combustion performance when burned.   20. A method according to claim 19, wherein the salt is inorganic.