U.S. patent application number 13/125113 was filed with the patent office on 2011-08-25 for water-mixed fuel, additive-modified fuel oil, additive, and methods for production of the same.
Invention is credited to Hideki Mochizuki, Kazuyuki Umemura.
Application Number | 20110203166 13/125113 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 42119079 |
Filed Date | 2011-08-25 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110203166 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Umemura; Kazuyuki ; et
al. |
August 25, 2011 |
WATER-MIXED FUEL, ADDITIVE-MODIFIED FUEL OIL, ADDITIVE, AND METHODS
FOR PRODUCTION OF THE SAME
Abstract
[Object] To provide an additive that can achieve uniform
dispersion of oil and water to improve combustion efficiency and
also can stabilize the uniform dispersion of oil and water for a
long period of time, an additive-modified fuel oil and a
water-mixed fuel obtained by addition of the additive, and methods
of producing them. [Solution] A method of producing an additive
that is used for generating a water-mixed fuel or a water-unmixed
modified fuel oil by being added to a fuel oil includes the steps
of: dissolving a relatively low molecular weight alcohol in a fatty
acid or a relatively high molecular weight alcohol to generate an
intermediate product 1; adding a surfactant to the intermediate
product 1 to generate an intermediate product 2; adding only an
amine compound or both an amine compound and ethylene glycol to the
intermediate product 2 to generate an intermediate product 3; and
adding aqueous ammonia or gaseous ammonia to the intermediate
product 3 to generate a desired additive.
Inventors: |
Umemura; Kazuyuki;
(Fukushima, JP) ; Mochizuki; Hideki; (Tokyo,
JP) |
Family ID: |
42119079 |
Appl. No.: |
13/125113 |
Filed: |
August 17, 2009 |
PCT Filed: |
August 17, 2009 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/JP2009/003904 |
371 Date: |
May 3, 2011 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
44/385 |
Current CPC
Class: |
C10L 1/328 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
44/385 |
International
Class: |
C10L 1/188 20060101
C10L001/188 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Oct 20, 2008 |
JP |
2008-270038 |
Claims
1. A method of producing an additive to be used for generating a
water-mixed fuel or a water-unmixed modified fuel oil by being
added to a fuel oil and for stably maintaining a uniformly mixed
state for a long period of time without causing separation between
oil and water, the method comprising the steps of: dissolving a
relatively low molecular weight alcohol in a fatty acid or a
relatively high molecular weight alcohol to generate an
intermediate product 1; adding a surfactant to the intermediate
product 1 to generate an intermediate product 2; adding only an
amine compound or both an amine compound and ethylene glycol to the
intermediate product 2 to generate an intermediate product 3; and
adding aqueous ammonia or gaseous ammonia to the intermediate
product 3 to generate a desired additive.
2. The method of producing an additive according to claim 1,
wherein the fuel oil is any of gasoline, kerosene, light oil, heavy
oil A, heavy oil B, heavy oil C, crude oil, vegetable oil, animal
oil, waste oil, and papermaking effluent black liquor.
3. The method of producing an additive according to claim 1,
wherein the fatty acid is any of butyric acid, valeric acid,
caproic acid, caprylic acid, capric acid, lauric acid, myristic
acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid, arachidic acid, behenic acid,
lignoceric acid, .alpha.-linolenic acid, stearidonic acid,
eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, linoleic acid,
.gamma.-linolenic acid, dihomo-.gamma.-linolenic acid, arachidonic
acid, oleic acid, erucic acid, maleic acid, fumaric acid, and
dodecanoic acid, or an ester thereof.
4. The method of producing an additive according to claim 1,
wherein the relatively high molecular weight alcohol is any of
pentanol, hexanol, undecanol, dodecanol, and tridecanol.
5. The method of producing an additive according to claim 1,
wherein the relatively low molecular weight alcohol is any of
methanol, ethanol, propanol, and ethylene glycol.
6. The method of producing an additive according to claim 1,
wherein the surfactant is a nonionic polyether surfactant selected
from polyoxyalkylene branched decyl ether, polyoxyethylene
monolaurate, polyoxyethylene monooleate, and polyoxyethylene
polyoxypropylene alkyl ether.
7. The method of producing an additive according to claim 1,
wherein the amine compound is any of monoethanolamine,
isopropanolamine, n-propanolamine, cyclohexylamine, and derivatives
thereof.
8. The method of producing an additive according to claim 1,
wherein the molar mixing ratio of the fatty acid or the relatively
high molecular weight alcohol; the relatively low molecular weight
alcohol; the surfactant; only the amine compound or both the amine
compound and ethylene glycol; and aqueous ammonia or gaseous
ammonia is 1:1.0 to 1.5:0.0 to 0.7:0.3 to 0.9:0.001 to 0.7 (molar
concentration), more preferably 1:1.1 to 1.4:0.4 to 0.6:0.4 to
0.8:0.003 to 0.2 (molar concentration).
9. An additive produced by the method according to claim 1, wherein
the raw materials of the additive at least include a fatty acid or
a relatively high molecular weight alcohol; a relatively low
molecular weight alcohol; a surfactant; at least one of an amine
compound and ethylene glycol; and aqueous ammonia or gaseous
ammonia.
10. A method of producing an additive-modified fuel oil, the
additive-modified fuel oil being a water-unmixed modified fuel oil
being able to be formed into a water-mixed fuel by addition of
water, and the method comprising the step of: the additive
according to claim 9 to a fuel oil to generate a desired
additive-modified fuel oil.
11. The method of producing an additive-modified fuel oil according
to claim 10, wherein the mixing ratio of the additive and the fuel
oil is 0.03 to 0.3:1 (volume), more preferably 0.05 to 0.2:1
(volume).
12. An additive-modified fuel oil produced by the method according
to claim 10, wherein the raw materials of the additive at least
include a fatty acid or a relatively high molecular weight alcohol;
a relatively low molecular weight alcohol; a surfactant; at least
one of an amine compound and ethylene glycol; and aqueous ammonia
or gaseous ammonia.
13. A method of producing a water-mixed fuel, the method comprising
the step of: adding water to the additive-modified fuel oil
according to claim 12 to generate a desired water-mixed fuel.
14. The method of producing a water-mixed fuel according to claim
13, wherein the mixing ratio of water and the additive-modified
fuel oil is 0.1 to 0.8:1 (volume), more preferably 0.2 to 0.6:1
(volume).
15. A water-mixed fuel produced by the method according to claim
13, wherein the raw materials of the additive at least include a
fatty acid or a relatively high molecular weight alcohol; a
relatively low molecular weight alcohol; a surfactant; only an
amine compound or both an amine compound and ethylene glycol; and
aqueous ammonia or gaseous ammonia; and a uniformly mixed state is
stably maintained for a long period of time without causing
separation between oil and water.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to a water-mixed fuel, a
water-unmixed modified fuel oil that can be formed into a
water-mixed fuel by addition of water, an additive added thereto,
and methods of producing them.
BACKGROUND ART
[0002] Water-mixed fuels, which are fuel oils mixed with water,
have attracted attention from the viewpoints of, for example,
depletion of petroleum resources and environmental problems caused
by the use of petroleum. It is already publicly known that the
water-mixed fuels provide combustion efficiency comparable to that
of combustion of only the fuel oils, and various types of
water-mixed fuels have been proposed.
[0003] Technologies relating to conventional water-mixed fuels are
described in, for example, Patent Documents 1 to 4.
CITATION LIST
Patent Literature
[0004] Patent Document 1: JP-A-2008-81740, "METHOD OF PRODUCING
EMULSION FUEL BY MIXING WATER AND COMBUSTIBLE OIL IN FINE PARTICLE
STATE, APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING EMULSION FUEL, AND EMULSION FUEL"
[0005] Patent Document 2: JP-A-2007-284527, "HEAVY OIL ADDITIVE"
[0006] Patent Document 3: JP-A-2006-111666, "METHOD OF PRODUCING
EMULSION FUEL, APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING EMULSION FUEL, AND EMULSION
FUEL-USING EQUIPMENT EQUIPPED WITH THE APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING
EMULSION FUEL" [0007] Patent Document 4: JP-A-2004-67913, "METHOD
OF PRODUCING WATER EMULSION FUEL"
[0008] However, conventional water-mixed fuels have problems such
as unstable combustion, instability during long term storage due
to, for example, oil/water separation, and a lack of uniform
dispersion between oil and water, and therefore are not capable of
sufficiently enduring practical use.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
Technical Problem
[0009] Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to
provide an additive that can achieve uniform dispersion of oil and
water to improve combustion efficiency and also can stabilize the
uniform dispersion of oil and water for a long period of time, an
additive-modified fuel oil and a water-mixed fuel obtained by
addition of the additive, and methods of producing them.
Solution to Problem
[0010] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the method
of producing an additive of the present invention includes the
following constitution. That is, the method produces an additive
that is used for generating a water-mixed fuel or a water-unmixed
modified fuel oil by being added to a fuel oil and is characterized
by including the steps of: dissolving a relatively low molecular
weight alcohol in a fatty acid or a relatively high molecular
weight alcohol to generate an intermediate product 1; adding a
surfactant to the intermediate product 1 to generate an
intermediate product 2; adding only an amine compound or both an
amine compound and ethylene glycol to the intermediate product 2 to
generate an intermediate product 3; and adding aqueous ammonia or
gaseous ammonia to the intermediate product 3 to generate a desired
additive.
[0011] Herein, as the fuel oil, gasoline, kerosene, light oil,
heavy oil A, heavy oil B, heavy oil C, crude oil, vegetable oil,
animal oil, waste oil, and papermaking effluent black liquor can be
used.
[0012] The fatty acid is preferably any of butyric acid, valeric
acid, caproic acid, caprylic acid, capric acid, lauric acid,
myristic acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid, arachidic acid, behenic
acid, lignoceric acid, .alpha.-linolenic acid, stearidonic acid,
eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, linoleic acid,
.gamma.-linolenic acid, dihomo-.gamma.-linolenic acid, arachidonic
acid, oleic acid, erucic acid, maleic acid, fumaric acid, and
dodecanoic acid, or an ester thereof.
[0013] The relatively high molecular weight alcohol is preferably
pentanol, hexanol, undecanol, dodecanol, or tridecanol.
[0014] The relatively low molecular weight alcohol is preferably
methanol, ethanol, propanol, or ethylene glycol.
[0015] The surfactant is preferably polyoxyalkylene branched decyl
ether, polyoxyethylene monolaurate, polyoxyethylene monooleate,
polyoxyethylene polyoxypropylene alkyl ether, polyoxyethylene
oleylamine, polyoxyethylene stearylamine, coconut oil fatty acid
diethanol amide, or oleic acid diethanol amide.
[0016] The amine compound is preferably monoethanolamine,
isopropanolamine, n-propanolamine, or cyclohexylamine.
[0017] The mixing ratio of the fatty acid or the relatively high
molecular weight alcohol, the relatively low molecular weight
alcohol, the surfactant, only the amine compound or both the amine
compound and ethylene glycol, and aqueous ammonia or gaseous
ammonia is preferably 1:1.0 to 1.5:0.0 to 0.7:0.3 to 0.9:0.001 to
0.7 (molar concentration), more preferably 1:1.1 to 1.4:0.4 to
0.6:0.4 to 0.8:0.003 to 0.2 (molar concentration).
[0018] The additive of the present invention is an additive
produced by the above-described method and is characterized in that
the raw materials at least include a fatty acid or a relatively
high molecular weight alcohol; a relatively low molecular weight
alcohol; a surfactant; only an amine compound or both an amine
compound and ethylene glycol; and aqueous ammonia or gaseous
ammonia.
[0019] The method of producing an additive-modified fuel oil of the
present invention is a method of producing a water-unmixed modified
fuel oil that can be formed into a water-mixed fuel by addition of
water and is characterized by including the step of adding the
above-described additive to a fuel oil to generate a desired
additive-modified fuel oil.
[0020] The mixing ratio of the additive and the fuel oil is
preferably 0.03 to 0.3:1 (volume), more preferably 0.05 to 0.2:1
(volume).
[0021] The additive-modified fuel oil of the present invention is
an additive-modified fuel oil produced by the above-described
method and is characterized in that the raw materials of the
additive at least include a fatty acid or a relatively high
molecular weight alcohol; a relatively low molecular weight
alcohol; a surfactant; at least one of an amine compound and
ethylene glycol; and aqueous ammonia or gaseous ammonia.
[0022] The method of producing a water-mixed fuel of the present
invention is characterized by including the step of adding water to
the above-described additive-modified fuel oil to generate a
desired water-mixed fuel.
[0023] The mixing ratio of water and the additive-modified fuel oil
is preferably 0.1 to 0.8:1 (volume), more preferably 0.2 to 0.6:1
(volume).
[0024] The water-mixed fuel of the present invention is a
water-mixed fuel produced by the above-described method and is
characterized in that the raw materials of the additive at least
include a fatty acid or a relatively high molecular weight alcohol;
a relatively low molecular weight alcohol; a surfactant; at least
one of an amine compound and ethylene glycol; and aqueous ammonia
or gaseous ammonia.
Advantages
[0025] In the water-mixed fuel obtained by the present invention,
appropriate addition of the additive realizes uniform dispersion of
oil and water to improve combustion efficiency and also stabilizes
the uniform dispersion of oil and water for a long period of time.
In addition, appropriate addition of the additive allows a
water-unmixed modified fuel oil to be transported and stored,
resulting in enhanced convenience.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0026] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a flow of
generating a water-mixed fuel.
[0027] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of
producing an additive.
[0028] FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of
producing an additive-modified fuel oil.
[0029] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of
producing a water-mixed fuel.
[0030] FIG. 5 is a photograph of experimental results showing
differences of water-mixed fuels in beakers.
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0031] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below
based on examples shown in the drawings. Note that embodiments are
not limited to those shown below and can be appropriately modified
in the design using conventionally known technologies such as those
described in the above-mentioned patent documents within a range
not departing from the spirit of the present invention.
[0032] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a flow of
generating a water-mixed fuel.
[0033] The present inventor has found the fact that uniform
dispersion of oil and water of a water-mixed fuel and long-term
stability of the uniform dispersion can be achieved by adding a
specific additive to the fuel oil.
[0034] Herein, the term "fuel oil" refers to general combustible
oils such as gasoline, kerosene, light oil, heavy oil A, heavy oil
B, heavy oil C, crude oil, vegetable oil, animal oil, waste oil,
and papermaking factory waste oil (black liquor). The water-mixed
fuel of the present invention is a mixture of the fuel oil and
predetermined amounts of water and the additive according to the
present invention.
[0035] The method of producing the additive is as follows:
[0036] First, an intermediate product 1 is generated by dissolving
a relatively low molecular weight alcohol in a fatty acid or a
relatively high molecular weight alcohol. The fatty acid may be a
mixture of a fatty acid and a fatty acid ester, as well as a fatty
acid alone.
[0037] Herein, the relatively high molecular weight alcohol is a
liquid having a higher alkyl group and refers to, for example,
pentanol, hexanol, undecanol, dodecanol, or tridecanol and may be
an alcohol having a side chain, such as iso-compounds.
[0038] The relatively low molecular weight alcohol is a liquid
having a lower alkyl group and refers to, for example, methanol,
ethanol, propanol, or ethylene glycol.
[0039] The fatty acid refers to monounsaturated to polyunsaturated
fatty acids that can dissolve methanol, ethanol, or propanol, and
examples thereof include butyric acid, valeric acid, caproic acid,
caprylic acid, capric acid, lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic
acid, stearic acid, arachidic acid, behenic acid, lignoceric acid,
.alpha.-linolenic acid, stearidonic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid,
docosahexaenoic acid, linoleic acid, .gamma.-linolenic acid,
dihomo-.gamma.-linolenic acid, arachidonic acid, oleic acid, erucic
acid, maleic acid, fumaric acid, and dodecanoic acid.
[0040] Then, an intermediate product 2 is generated by adding a
surfactant to the intermediate product 1 and sufficiently stirring
the mixture to obtain a certain condition.
[0041] The reaction temperature during the generation of the
intermediate product 2 is preferably 0 to 40.degree. C., and the
condition for the stirring is preferably within a range of low
incorporation of air.
[0042] Herein, the surfactant refers to, for example, a nonionic
polyether surfactant (e.g., polyoxyalkylene branched decyl ether,
polyoxyethylene monolaurate, polyoxyethylene monooleate, or
polyoxyethylene polyoxypropylene alkyl ether) or a nonionic amide
surfactant (e.g., polyoxyethylene oleylamine, polyoxyethylene
stearylamine, coconut oil fatty acid diethanol amide, or oleic acid
diethanol amide).
[0043] Then, an intermediate product 3 is generated by adding only
an amine compound or both an amine compound and ethylene glycol to
the intermediate product 2 and sufficiently stirring the mixture to
obtain a certain condition.
[0044] Since heat is produced during the generation of the
intermediate product 3, it is preferable to sufficiently stir the
mixture so that the reaction uniformly proceeds.
[0045] Here, the amine compound refers to, for example,
monoethanolamine, diethanolamine, or propanolamine.
[0046] Then, an additive of the present invention is generated by
adding aqueous ammonia or gaseous ammonia to the intermediate
product 3 and sufficiently stirring the mixture to obtain a certain
condition.
[0047] Since addition of an excessive amount of gaseous ammonia
turns the additive into a gel, it is preferable to appropriately
adjust the amount of the gaseous ammonia.
[0048] Since it is possible to mix raw materials in various
combinations, an optimum mixing ratio differs depending on the raw
materials, but the following values can be used as rough ratio
standard:
[0049] (Fatty acid or relatively high molecular weight
alcohol):(relatively low molecular weight
alcohol):(surfactant):(only amine compound or both amine compound
and ethylene glycol):(aqueous ammonia or gaseous ammonia) is 1:1.0
to 1.5:0.0 to 0.7:0.3 to 0.9:0.001 to 0.7 (molar
concentration).
[0050] More preferably, (fatty acid or relatively high molecular
weight alcohol):(relatively low molecular weight
alcohol):(surfactant):(only amine compound or both amine compound
and ethylene glycol):(aqueous ammonia or gaseous ammonia) is 1:1.1
to 1.4:0.4 to 0.6:0.4 to 0.8:0.003 to 0.2 (molar
concentration).
EXAMPLES
Example
[0051] An example of producing an additive is as follows:
[0052] As shown in FIG. 2, an additive can be produced by mixing
and stirring methanol (3.94 mol) with oleic acid (2.50 mol) and
then sequentially mixing and stirring with polyoxyalkylene branched
decyl ether (0.19 mol), isopropylamine (0.70 mol), ethylene glycol
(0.55 mol), and gaseous ammonia (0.01 mol).
[0053] The method of modifying a fuel oil by the additive is as
follows:
[0054] The above-described additive according to the present
invention is mixed and stirred with a fuel oil, such as gasoline,
kerosene, light oil, heavy oil A, heavy oil B, heavy oil C, crude
oil, vegetable oil, animal oil, waste oil, or papermaking factory
waste oil (black liquor), to generate an additive-modified fuel
oil.
[0055] This additive-modified fuel oil may be stored in this form
to generate a water-mixed fuel by addition of water when it is
used.
[0056] The types of raw materials of the additive, such as fatty
acid, are appropriately determined according to the type of the
fuel oil to which the additive is added. As a result, the amount of
water to be added, described below, can be optimized.
[0057] The necessary amount of the additive varies depending on the
type of the fuel oil and the type of the surfactant used in the
additive, but the following values can be used as rough ratio
standard:
(additive):(fuel oil)=0.03 to 0.3:1 (volume); and
more preferably,
(additive):(fuel oil)=0.05 to 0.2:1 (volume).
Example
[0058] An example of producing an additive-modified fuel oil is as
follows:
[0059] As shown in FIG. 3, an additive-modified fuel oil can be
produced by mixing and stirring the additive (3 L, volume: 23) with
kerosene (10 L, volume: 77).
[0060] The method of preparing a water-mixed fuel of the
additive-modified fuel oil is as follows:
[0061] The above-described additive-modified fuel oil according to
the present invention is mixed and stirred with water to generate a
water-mixed fuel.
[0062] Since incorporation of air during the stirring has a risk of
causing an explosive gas mixture, the stirring is preferably
performed under conditions not incorporating air at all.
[0063] The generated fuel is liquefied or gelified depending on the
ratio of water. If the ratio of water is too high, a decrease in
combustion temperature or combustion calorie occurs. For example,
when the fuel is used for a gas turbine, water to be added is
preferably feed-water for boiler.
[0064] Note that when the mixing ratio of raw materials of the
additive is not sufficiently appropriate or when the reaction of
the additive is not sufficiently accelerated, a white precipitate
may be generated after the addition of water, but this does not
interfere with combustion.
[0065] As the amount of water to be added, from the viewpoints of
combustion efficiency and economic efficiency, the following values
can be used as rough ratio standard:
(water):(additive-modified fuel oil)=0.1 to 0.8:1 (volume), and
more preferably,
(water):(additive-modified fuel oil)=0.2 to 0.6:1 (volume).
Example
[0066] An example of producing a water-mixed fuel is as
follows:
[0067] As shown in FIG. 4, a water-mixed fuel can be produced by
mixing and stirring water (5 L, volume: 28) with kerosene (13 L,
volume: 72).
[0068] FIG. 5 is a photograph of experimental results showing
degrees of uniformity in water-mixed fuels.
[0069] The ratio of additive increases from the leftmost beaker to
the right, and the ratios of kerosene, water, and additive are
(kerosene):(water):(additive)=63:31:6, 59:29:12, 56:27:17, and
53:26:21.
[0070] In general, the conditions of a water-mixed fuel vary
depending on the mixing ratio of oil and water and on the addition
ratio of the additive. However, in the water-mixed fuel according
to the present invention, though cloudiness increases with the
addition ratio of water and decrease the transmittance, the
uniformly mixed state of oil and water is maintained without
causing separation into two layers or separation of grains.
Furthermore, the uniformly mixed state is stably maintained for a
long period of time.
INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY
[0071] The present invention is practical as various fuels, for
example, fuels for various types of boilers such as hot air
boilers, hot water boilers, and steam boilers and for diesel
engines of, e.g., generators, agricultural machines, automobiles,
and ships. Thus, the present invention has a high industrial
utility value.
* * * * *