Diesel Fuel Additive Mitigating Detergent Cold Flow Impairment
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Solution Overview
Problem
The inclusion of detergent additives in fuel compositions containing distillate fuels can impair the cold flow performance of cold flow additives, leading to reduced effectiveness in low-temperature operations.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a further additive, such as a carboxylic acid or its mixture, into fuel compositions with both detergent and cold flow additives to mitigate the detrimental effects of the detergent on cold flow performance, allowing for increased detergent concentrations without impairing cold flow performance or reducing the need for higher cold flow additive levels.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If detergent additive is included in fuel composition to reduce engine deposits, then engine deposit build-up is reduced, but cold flow performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
A further additive serving as an intermediary substance is introduced to mediate between the detergent additive and cold flow additive. This further additive prevents the detergent from deactivating the cold flow additive, allowing both additives to function effectively simultaneously without direct harmful interaction.
Solution Approach 2:
The detrimental interaction between detergent and cold flow additives is converted into a beneficial situation by adding the further additive, which transforms the harmful deactivation effect into a compatible mixture where all additives work together to improve overall fuel performance.
2Reliability
If detergent additive concentration is increased to improve deposit control, then deposit removal capability is enhanced, but cold flow performance is further impaired
Solution Approach 1:
The further additive acts as a protective intermediary that enables higher concentrations of detergent additive to be used without proportionally increasing the harm to cold flow performance. It buffers the interaction, allowing optimized deposit control while maintaining acceptable cold flow properties.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If cold flow additive concentration is increased to improve low-temperature flow, then cold flow performance is enhanced, but the beneficial effect is reduced by detergent additive
Solution Approach 1:
The further additive serves as a protective intermediary that shields the cold flow additive from deactivation by the detergent. This allows the cold flow additive to maintain its effectiveness at lower concentrations, improving overall formulation efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The introduction of the further additive changes the chemical environment parameters of the fuel composition, creating conditions where the cold flow additive remains active and effective even in the presence of detergent additives, thereby improving the reliability of cold flow performance.
Data Source
AI summary
Use, in a fuel composition containing a distillate fuel, a detergent additive and a cold flow additive, of a further additive selected from (a) acids and mixtures thereof; and (b) lubricity enhancing additives, for the purpose of reducing the effect of the detergent additive on the cold flow performance of the composition, and/or improving the cold flow performance of the composition, and/or reducing the amount of cold flow additive in the composition, and/or increasing the concentration of detergent additive in the composition without undo impairment of the cold flow performance. The further additive is preferably selected from carboxylic acids, more preferably fatty acids, and mixtures thereof. The distillate fuel is preferably a middle distillate fuel. The overall fuel composition is preferably an automotive fuel composition, more preferably a diesel fuel composition.