Fuel and related compositions – Liquid fuels – Aluminum or heavy metal – other than lead – containing
Patent
1995-05-17
1997-01-14
McAvoy, Ellen M.
Fuel and related compositions
Liquid fuels
Aluminum or heavy metal, other than lead, containing
44358, 44437, C10L 130
Patent
active
055934641
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This invention relates to additives for liquid hydrocarbon fuels, and fuel compositions containing them. More specifically the invention relates to additives effective to reduce the particulate and/or unburnt hydrocarbon content of exhaust gas emissions from distillate hydrocarbon fuels such as diesel and heating oils.
Diesel fuels and diesel engines are particularly prone to the emission of small size particulate material in the exhaust gas, and these particulates are known to contain harmful pollutants. These particulates include not only those which are visible as smoke emission, and to which diesel engines are prone especially when the engine is overloaded, worn, badly maintained or quite simply dirty, but also those which emerge from lightly loaded, clean diesel engines and which are normally invisible to the naked eye.
As indicated, particulate emission by diesel engines is a major source of harmful atmospheric pollution, and an effective particulate suppressant for diesel fuels is highly sought after.
Similar problems can also arise during the combustion of other distillate fuel oils, e.g. heating oils.
Yet another problem associated with liquid hydrocarbon fuels of all kinds is that of incomplete combustion (which is largely responsible for soot formation anyway) resulting in the emission of unburnt hydrocarbons into the atmosphere as an atmospheric pollutant. A need exists therefore for additives effective to reduce the content of unburnt hydrocarbon in the exhaust gas emissions from liquid hydrocarbon fuels.
In the proceedings of the Nineteenth Symposium (international) on Combustion, 1983, p. 1379, published by the Combustion Institute, Haynes and Jander have disclosed that alkali and alkaline earth metals can reduce sooting in premixed hydrocarbon flames.
More specifically related to diesel engines, proposals have been made concerning the use of rare earth metals to reduce particulate emissions by diesel engines, see, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,522,631, 4,568,357 and 4,968,322.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,522,631 particulate emission from diesel fuel is reduced by adding to the fuel prior to combustion, an additive composition comprising the combination of an oxygenated organic compound, e.g. alcohol, aldehyde, ketone or alkylcarbitol, preferably n-hexylcarbitol, and an oil-soluble rare earth compound, preferably a cerium carboxylate salt such as cerium octanoate.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,568,357 a combination of manganese dioxide and cerium (III) naphthenate is added to diesel fuels to facilitate the regeneration of ceramic particulate traps used with diesel engines to entrap particulates in the exhaust gas, and which traps require periodic regeneration by burning off the trapped particulates. The manganese oxide and cerium naphthenate act synergistically to lower the burn-off temperature required to effect the regeneration of the trap. The U.S. Pat. No. 4,568,357 patent does not suggest that the cerium compound is effective to reduce particulate emission in the first place.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,968,322 a combination of rare earth metal soaps preferably selected from a cerium soap, a neodymium soap and a lanthanum soap, are added to heavy fuel oils to improve the combustion rate of the fuel.
Other attempts to reduce particulate emission from diesel fuels, mostly based on calcium and barium soaps have been reported in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,926,454, 3,410,670, 3,413,102, 3,539,312 and 3,499,742.
In addition to the foregoing, oil-soluble chelates of Ce(IV) such as ceric 3,5-heptanedionate, have been proposed as antiknock compounds in gasoline fuels for use in spark ignition internal combustion engines as an alternative to lead tetraalkyls such as tetraethyllead and tetramethyllead, see U.S. Pat. No. 4,036,605. However there is no suggestion that such chelates have any particulate suppressant activity in diesel fuels.
Other metals such as copper, manganese and iron have also been considered but give rise to other environmental concerns and/or concerns regarding damage or wear to the engine itself.
In accordance with
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patent: 3794473 (1974-02-01), Eisentraut et al.
patent: 4036605 (1977-07-01), Hartle
patent: 4211535 (1980-07-01), Hartle
patent: 4251233 (1981-02-01), Sievers et al.
patent: 4336148 (1982-06-01), Wirth et al.
Barr Donald
Cook Stephen L.
Richards Paul J.
Rush Maurice W.
McAvoy Ellen M.
The Associated Octel Company Limited
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