COMPOSITIONS

• US 20140182192A1
• Filed: 12/19/2013
• Published: 07/03/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shell Oil Company (Shell Plc)
• Original Assignee: Shell Oil Company (Shell Plc)
• Inventors: BREWER, Mark Lawrence, CRACKNELL, Roger Francis, GOH, Tor Kit
• Granted Patent: US 9,315,754 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 44/322
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 1/143 mixtures of organic macromolecular compounds with organic non-macromolecular compounds
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 1/18 containing oxygen
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 1/1811 peroxides; ozonides
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 1/198 obtained otherwise than by reactions involving only carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds homo- or copolymers of compounds having one or more unsaturated aliphatic radicals, each having only one carbon to carbon double bond, and at least one being terminated by an acyloxy radical of a saturated carboxylic acid, of carbonic acid
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 1/223 having at least one amino group bound to an aromatic carbon atom C10L1/221, C10L1/2227 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 1/231 nitro compounds; nitrates; nitrites C10L1/221 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 1/232 containing nitrogen in a heterocyclic ring C10L1/221 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 10/00 Use of additives to fuels or fires for particular purposes additives for liquid carbonaceous fuels characterised by their chemical nature C10L1/10; using binders for briquetting solid fuels C10L5/10; using additives to improve the combustion of solid fuels C10L9/10
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 10/12 for improving the cetane number

Abstract

An additive composition for use in a diesel fuel formulation, comprising a cetane improver in an inclusion complex with a modified cyclodextrin of formula (I):

wherein n is an integer from 6 to 20, and R¹, R² and R³ are each independently selected from hydrogen, optionally substituted alkyl, optionally substituted aryl and carbonyl, provided that R¹, R² and R³ are not all hydrogen. Also provided is a diesel fuel formulation comprising the additive composition, and the use of a modified cyclodextrin (I) as a vehicle for a cetane improver in an additive composition or diesel fuel formulation.

Claims

1. An additive composition for use in a diesel fuel formulation, the additive composition comprising:

(i) a cetane improver;

and (ii) a modified cyclodextrin of formula (I);

2. The additive composition of claim 1, wherein in the modified cyclodextrin of formula (I), the groups R¹, R² and R³ are independently selected from hydrogen and unsubstituted C1 to C12 alkyl groups.

3. The additive composition of claim 2, wherein at least two of R¹, R² and R³ are independently selected from unsubstituted C1 to C12 alkyl groups.

4. The additive composition of claim 3, wherein two of the groups R¹, R² and R³ are independently selected from unsubstituted C2 to C8 alkyl groups.

5. The additive composition of claim 1, wherein in the modified cyclodextrin of formula (I), the integer n is from 6 to 8.

6. The additive composition of claim 5, wherein n is 7.

7. The additive composition of claim 1, wherein the cetane improver is selected from organic nitrates and nitrites;

organic (hydro)peroxides; and

mixtures thereof.

8. The additive composition of claim 1, wherein the cetane improver is an octane booster which, when present as a guest molecule within a host molecule of the modified cyclodextrin (I), is capable of increasing the cetane number of the diesel fuel formulation.

9. The additive composition of claim 1, wherein the cetane improver and the modified cyclodextrin (I) are such that the cetane improver is released from the cyclodextrin inclusion complex when the additive composition is subjected to a temperature above or below a predetermined value.

10. The additive composition of claim 1, wherein the cetane improver and the modified cyclodextrin (I) are such that the cetane improver is released from the cyclodextrin inclusion complex when the additive composition is subjected to a pressure above or below a predetermined value.

11. The additive composition of claim 1, wherein the cetane improver and the modified cyclodextrin (I) are such that the cetane improver is released from the cyclodextrin inclusion complex when the additive composition is exposed to another species.

12. A diesel fuel formulation comprising the additive composition of claim 1.

13. The diesel fuel formulation of claim 12, wherein the concentration of the inclusion complex is from 500 to 1,500 ppmw.

15. Use of the additive composition of claim 1 for one or more of the following purposes:

i. modifying the solubility of the cetane improver in the additive composition or diesel fuel formulation;

ii. modifying the activity of the cetane improver in the composition or formulation;

iii. modifying the stability of the cetane improver in the composition or formulation;

iv. modifying the volatility of the cetane improver in the composition or formulation;

v. protecting the cetane improver, at least partially, from an external influence to which it may be exposed in the composition or formulation;

vi. controlling delivery of the cetane improver within or from the composition or formulation;

vii. reducing the concentration of an additive which is present in the composition or formulation; and

viii. increasing the cetane number of the composition or formulation.

14. Use of a modified cyclodextrin of formula (I)

16. A method comprising:

introducing an additive composition in a diesel fuel formulation into a diesel fuel-consuming system, wherein the additive composition comprises;

(i) a cetane improver;

and (ii) a modified cyclodextrin of formula (I);