Fuel or fuel additive containing doped cerium oxide nanoparticles
A fuel or fuel additives is disclosed which includes particles of cerium oxide which have been doped with a divalent or trivalent metal or metalloid which is a rare earth metal, a transition metal or a metal of group IIA, IIIB, VB, or VIB of the Periodic Table.
1. A fuel which comprises one or more particles of cerium oxide which have been doped with a divalent or trivalent metal or metalloid which is a rare earth metal, a transition metal or a metal of group IIA, IIIB, VB, or VIB of the Periodic Table.
2. A fuel additive which comprises one or more particles of cerium oxide which have been doped with a divalent or trivalent metal or metalloid which is a rare earth metal, a transition metal or a metal of group IIA, IIIB, VB, or VIB of the Periodic Table and a polar or non-polar organic solvent.
3. The fuel according to claim 1 or the fuel additive according to claim 2 wherein the metal is a transition metal.
4. The fuel or fuel additive according to claim 3 wherein the metal is rhodium, copper, silver, gold, palladium, platinum, iron, manganese, chromium, cobalt or vanadium.
5. The fuel according to claim 1 or the fuel additive according to claim 2 wherein the metal is terbium, praeseodymium, samarium, gadolinium, antimony, selenium, gallium, magnesium, beryllium, boron or calcium.
6. The fuel according to claim 1 or the fuel additive according to claim 2 wherein the oxide has the formula:
Ce 1−x M x O 2
where M is said metal or metalloid and x has a value up to 0.3.
7. The fuel according to claim 1 or the fuel additive according to claim 2 wherein the oxide has the formula:
[(CeO 2 ) 1−n (REO y ) n ] 1−k M′ k
where M′ is said metal or metalloid other than a rare earth, RE is a rare earth, y is 1 or 1.5 and each of n and k, which may be the same or different, has a value up to 0.5.
8. The fuel according to claim 1 or the fuel additive according to claim 2 wherein the particles have a size not exceeding 1 micron.
9. The fuel or fuel additive according to claim 8 wherein the particles have a size from 1 to 300 nm.
10. The fuel or fuel additive according to claim 1 or the fuel additive according to claim 2 wherein the cerium oxide has been doped with more than one said metal or metalloid and/or oxide thereof.
11. The fuel or fuel additive according to claim 1 or the fuel additive according to claim 2 wherein the particles have been coated with an organic acid, anhydride or ester or a Lewis base.
12. The fuel or fuel additive according to claim 11 in which the coating agent is oleic acid or dodecylsuccinic anhydride.
13. The fuel according to claim 1 which is diesel fuel.
14. The fuel according to claim 1 which also comprises an organo platinum group compound.
15. The fuel additive according to claim 2 wherein the solvent is an aliphatic or aromatic hydrocarbon or an aliphatic alcohol.
16. The fuel additive according to claim 2 which comprises one or more of a detergent, dehazer, anti-foaming agent, ignition improver, anti-rust agent, reodorant, anti-oxidant, metal deactivator or lubricity agent.
17. A method for making an additive-containing fuel comprising incorporating into a fuel particles of cerium oxide which have been doped with a divalent or trivalent metal or metalloid which is a rare earth metal, a transition metal or a metal of group IIA, IIIB, VB, or VIB of the Periodic Table.
18. A method of improving the combustion of a fuel which comprises incorporating therein particles of cerium oxide which have been doped with a divalent or trivalent metal or metalloid which is a rare earth metal, a transition metal or a metal of group IIA, IJIB, VB, or VIB of the Periodic Table.
19. A fuel which comprises the fuel additive as claimed in claim 2 .