Fuel Additive Solvent Mixture for Viscosity Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need for effective and convenient methods to incorporate viscosity index (VI) improving polymers into fuel compositions, particularly diesel fuel, as existing approaches face challenges in handling large quantities and maintaining compliance with fuel specifications.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a solvent mixture with 40-65% v/v middle distillate gas oil, 10-50% v/v aromatic hydrocarbons, and 3-10% v/v fatty acid alkyl esters is used to create an additive composition that includes 5-15% w/w of a VI improving polymer, such as a polystyrene-polyisoprene di-block copolymer, facilitating its incorporation into fuel while mitigating viscosity increases and ensuring compliance with fuel specifications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If VI improving polymer is incorporated into fuel composition, then viscosity index is improved, but viscosity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A solvent mixture comprising middle distillate gas oil, aromatic hydrocarbons, and oxygenates is used as an intermediary carrier to dissolve the VI improving polymer. This solvent system mediates between the polymer and the fuel, allowing the polymer to be incorporated without causing excessive viscosity increase in the final fuel composition. The aromatic hydrocarbons and oxygenates specifically help control the viscosity of the additive composition.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical and chemical parameters of the additive composition by carefully controlling the composition ratios of different solvents (40-65% middle distillate gas oil, 10-50% aromatic hydrocarbons, 3-10% oxygenates) and polymer concentration (5-15% w/w). These parameter adjustments optimize the balance between VI improvement and viscosity control, ensuring the additive composition remains handleable and effective.
2Reliability
If high concentration of VI improving polymer is used, then effectiveness is improved, but handling difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The solvent mixture acts as a mediator that enables high concentrations of VI improving polymer (5-15% w/w) to be incorporated while maintaining handleable viscosity. Without this intermediary solvent system, high polymer concentrations would result in excessively viscous compositions that are difficult to handle and dose.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention creates a composite additive composition that combines the VI improving polymer with a specifically formulated solvent mixture. This composite material integrates the effectiveness of high polymer concentration with the handleability provided by the solvent system, resulting in a composition that is both effective and convenient to use.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If aromatic hydrocarbons and oxygenates are added to solvent mixture, then viscosity control is improved, but complexity of composition increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention optimizes the compositional parameters by specifying precise ranges for each component (40-65% middle distillate gas oil, 10-50% aromatic hydrocarbons, 3-10% oxygenates). These parameter definitions provide a balanced formulation that achieves effective viscosity control while maintaining reasonable compositional simplicity for industrial application.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method allows for the effective and convenient incorporation of VI improving polymers into fuel, reducing handling issues and maintaining fuel compliance by controlling viscosity and component concentrations, enabling the use of a high polymer concentration without affecting fuel specifications.
Implementation Method 1
VI improving additives may be pre-dissolved to form an additive composition or pre-blend, which is subsequently dosed into the fuel component or composition. Pre-dissolution has the advantage of leading to a more even distribution of the VI improving additive in the fuel.
Implementation Method 2
the additive composition herein has been found to mitigate the trade off between VI improving polymer concentration and viscosity. The fact that the additive composition comprises at least 15% v/v of one or more components selected from aromatic hydrocarbons and oxygenates, has surprisingly been found to lead to a significant mitigation of viscosity increases
Implementation Method 3
the use of VI improving additives, in an automotive fuel composition, for the purpose of improving the acceleration performance of an internal combustion engine into which the fuel composition is or is intended to be introduced
Data Source
AI summary
An additive composition for blending with fuel, the additive composition comprising at least 3% w/w of a viscosity index (VI) improving polymer; and a solvent mixture including in the range of from 10 to 85% v/v of middle distillate gas oil and at least 15% v/v of one or more components selected from aromatic hydrocarbons and oxygenates.