BIO-BASED SYNTHETIC FLUIDS
A method is provided involving altering the viscosity of bio-derived paraffins to produce a paraffinic fluid, where the altering step includes chlorinating the bio-derived paraffins; the bio-derived paraffins include a hydrodeoxygenated product produced by hydrodeoxygenating a bio-based feed where the bio-based feed includes bio-derived fatty acids, fatty acid esters, or a combination thereof; the bio-derived paraffins include n-paraffins; and the n-paraffins have a biodegradability of at least 40% after about 23 days of exposure to microorganisms. Also provided are methods of protecting and/or cleaning a substance by applying the paraffinic fluid.
1 . A method comprising altering the viscosity of bio-derived paraffins to produce a paraffinic fluid, wherein the altering step comprises chlorinating the bio-derived paraffins to produce a chlorinated product, where the chlorinated product comprises haloalkanes and has a kinematic viscosity of greater than about 10 cSt at 40° C.;
the paraffinic fluid comprises the chlorinated product;
the bio-derived paraffins comprise a hydrodeoxygenated product produced by hydrodeoxygenating a bio-based feed where the bio-based feed comprises bio-derived fatty acids, fatty acid esters, or a combination thereof; and
the bio-derived paraffins comprise n-paraffins where the n-paraffins have a kinematic viscosity of less than about 10 cSt at 40° C.; and
have a biodegradability of at least about 40% after about 23 days of exposure to microorganisms.
2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein chlorinating the bio-derived paraffins comprises contacting the bio-derived paraffins with chlorine gas at a temperature between about 60° C. and about 150° C. to produce the chlorinated product.
3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the chlorinated product is about 30 wt % to about 70 wt % chlorine.
4 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the chlorinated product has less than about 1 wt % aromatics.
5 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the chlorinated product is free of benzene.
6 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the hydrodeoxygenated product has less than about 1 wt % aromatics;
the chlorinated product has less than about 1 wt % aromatics; and
the paraffinic fluid has less than about 1 wt % aromatics.
7 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the hydrodeoxygenated product has less than about 0.1 wt % aromatics;
the chlorinated product has less than about 0.1 wt % aromatics; and
the paraffinic fluid has less than about 0.1 wt % aromatics.
8 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the temperature for contacting the bio-derived paraffins with chlorine gas is about 80° C. to about 120° C.
9 . The method of claim 2 , wherein contacting the bio-derived paraffins with chlorine gas does not involve a catalyst.
10 . The method of claim 2 , wherein contacting the bio-derived paraffins with chlorine gas further comprises UV light.
11 . The method of claim 2 , further comprising purging the chlorinated product with air or nitrogen.
12 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the paraffinic fluid comprises bio-derived paraffins within the C 16 -C 36 range.
13 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the bio-derived paraffins are produced by at least partially hydroisomerizing the hydrodeoxygenated product to produce a hydroisomerized product; wherein the bio-derived paraffins comprise the hydrodeoxygenated product and the hydroisomerized product;
the hydrodeoxygenated product comprises n-paraffins;
the hydroisomerized product comprises isoparaffins where at least about 80 wt % of the isoparaffins are mono-methyl branched paraffins and the mono-methyl branched paraffins comprise less than about 30 wt % terminal branched isoparaffins; and
the isoparaffins have a kinematic viscosity of greater than about 10 cSt at 40° C.; and
have a biodegradability of at least about 40% after about 23 days of exposure to microorganisms.
14 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the hydrodeoxygenated product comprises n-paraffins in the range of about 80 wt % to about 100 wt %;
cycloparaffins in the range of about 0 wt % to about 10 wt %; and
less than about 1 wt % total aromatics.
15 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the hydrodeoxygenated product comprises n-paraffins in the range of about 90 wt % to about 100 wt %;
cycloparaffins in the range of about 0 wt % to about 10 wt %; and
less than about 0.1 wt % total aromatics.
16 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the bio-derived paraffins are produced by hydrodeoxygenating the bio-based feed to produce a hydrodeoxygenated product; and
at least partially hydroisomerizing the hydrodeoxygenated product to produce a hydroisomerized product; wherein the bio-derived paraffins comprise the hydrodeoxygenated product and the hydroisomerized product;
the hydrodeoxygenated product comprises n-paraffins;
the hydroisomerized product comprises isoparaffins where at least about 80 wt % of the isoparaffins are mono-methyl branched paraffins and the mono-methyl branched paraffins comprise less than about 30 wt % terminal branched isoparaffins; and
the isoparaffins have a kinematic viscosity of greater than about 10 cSt at 40° C.; and
have a biodegradability of at least about 40% after about 23 days of exposure to microorganisms.
17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein contacting the bio-derived paraffins with chlorine gas does not involve a catalyst.
18 . The method of claim 16 , wherein contacting the bio-derived paraffins with chlorine gas further comprises UV light.
19 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising purging the chlorinated product with air or nitrogen.
20 . The method of claim 16 , wherein paraffinic fluid comprises bio-derived paraffins within the C 16 -C 36 range.
21 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the hydrodeoxygenated product comprises n-paraffins in the range of about 80 wt % to about 100 wt %;
cycloparaffins in the range of about 0 wt % to about 10 wt %; and
less than about 1 wt % total aromatics.
22 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the hydrodeoxygenated product comprises n-paraffins in the range of about 90 wt % to about 100 wt %;
cycloparaffins in the range of about 0 wt % to about 10 wt %; and
less than about 0.1 wt % total aromatics.
23 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the bio-derived fatty acids, fatty acid esters, or a combination thereof comprises algae oils, beef tallow, camelina oil, canola oil, rapeseed oil, castor oil, choice white grease, coconut oil, coffee bean oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, fish oils, hemp oil, Jatropha oil, linseed oil, mustard oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil, poultry fat, soybean oil, sunflower oil, tall oil, tall oil fatty acid, Tung oil, used cooking oils, yellow grease, products of the food industry, or combinations of any two or more thereof.
24 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the bio-derived fatty acids, fatty acid esters, or a combination thereof comprise soybean oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, canola oil, coconut oil, sunflower oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil, rapeseed oil, or a combination of any two or more thereof.
25 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the paraffinic fluid is free of benzene.
26 . The paraffinic fluid produced by the method of claim 1 .
27 . The paraffinic fluid of claim 26 , wherein the paraffinic fluid is used as a protecting agent, a cleaning agent, or a combination of both.
28 . The paraffinic fluid of claim 26 , wherein the paraffinic fluid acts as a flame retardant.