US1376180A - Process of treating liquid fuel - Google Patents

Description

E. E. WICKERSHAM.

PROCESS OF TREATING LIQUID FUEL.-

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 29, 1920.

Patented Apr. 26, 1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

INVENTOR 5 Mcr-fi/yfl/ f l H l 7 V 5 a n \m m s u w m W ma R W Z i L lg n E (E O I! M V (v m H z, {,2 H i 6 8 a1 4 M 7 2 J H 3 a W L ATTORNEYS E. E. WICKERSHAM.

PROCESS OF TREATING LIQUID FUEL.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 29. 1920.

7 1,376, 1 80. I Patented Apr. 26, 1921.

2 SHEETS-*SHEET 2.

WITN I IN VENTOR I EE-Wz'ckersizam, V

421 A TTOR NE Y5 To all whom. it concern:

UNITED V STATES PATENT OFFICE. 1'

ELMER E. WICKERSHAM, OF STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA. I

PROCESS OF TREATING LIQUID FUEL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 26, 1921.

Application filed Jun e 29, 1920. Serial No. 392,663.

Be it known that I, ELMER E. WIGKER- SHAM, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Stockton, San Joaquin county, State of California, have invented a certain new and useful Process of Treating Liquid Fuel, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to a process of treating hydrocarbon oil products, such as gasolene, kerosene, distillate, stove tops, crude oil and other hydrocarbon oil products.

Crude oil and liquid fuels, derived from crude oil, consist of a mixture of components having different boiling points and the end boiling point,.or that temperature at which the last remaining liquid is volatilized, determines to a great extent the desirabihty of the use of the fuel for different purposes. For instance, in internal combustion engines, it is detrimental to employ liquid fuels having very high end boiling points, because all of the fuel is not vaporized, but flows down the cylinder walls, past the pistons, and mixes with the lubricating oil in the crank case, reatly impairing and often destroying its lu ricating qualities. Lower intermediate boiling points also improve the quality of the fuel by rendering large proportions thereof volatile at lower temperatures. One, of the great difficulties experienced today in the operation of motor vehicles, such as trucks, tractors and automobiles, is'the high end boiling point of the fuel, which causes the contamination of the lubricating oil, and this is particularly true in tractors burning kerosene, distillate and other low gravity fuels.

An, object of my invention is to provide a process of treating liquid fuel to lower the Another object of the invention is to provide a process of treating hydrocarbon oil products to improve their qualities.

The invention possesses other advantageous features, some of which, with the foregoing, will be set forth at length in the following description where I shall outline in full, the process of my invention and that form of the apparatus which I have selected for illustration in the drawings accompanying and forming part of the present specification. In said drawings, I have shown several forms of apparatus of my invention, but it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to such forms, since the invention, as set forth In the claims, may be embodied in other forms.

Referring to the drawings:

Iugure l is a longitudinal section throu 11 one form of apparatus for carrying out t 0 process of my invention. w

Flg. 2 1s a vertical section through a form of the apparatus having certain practical advantages. 1

Fig. 3 is a vertical section through a modified form of apparatus.

Fig. 4 is a cross-section taken on the line 4-4., Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a Vertical section of a form of apparatus for successively treating a stream of fuel.

Fig. 6 is a vertical section of a modified form of apparatus which is operative at low voltages.

In accordance with my invention, I submerge one or more pairs of electrodes in the fuel and pass a high tension interrupted or alternating electric current across the gap or gaps between the electrodes, so that the.

fuel is subjected to the action of the electhat the propagation of the flame in a compressed combustible mixture of the treated fuel is very rapid, and I have observed in operating an internal combustion engine, with the exhaust conduit open, that no flame is discharged through the conduit. When used on internal combustion engine fuels, I prefer to treat the fuel immediately before it enters the carburetor and to arr'an e the device for treating the fuel in the fue conduit, so that when the motor is in operation fuel is flowing through the device, although the fuel may be subjected to treatment at the refinery, with equally advantageous results. The fuel capacity of the device used on internal combustion engines is small, so that only a small quantity of fuel is treated at a time, but is sufficiently large so that the thereby providing base oils. lighter products, such as gasolene and kerosene, but is also true with the heavier products, such as lubricating oils.

flow of the fuel therethrough is quite slow, for a material time of treatment of the fuel. Eddy currents and agitation of the fuel in the device cause practically all of the fuel to be influenced I flows slowly therethrough, thereby permitby the spark.

- I have found that one of the results of the,

passage of the electric discharge through and precipitation of the base from the prod.- uct, that is, asphalt in the case of asphalt base oils, and paraflinin thecase ofparaffin Th1s is true not only with. the

The. device shown in Fig. 1, which is illus-- trative of my invention, comprises a metallic'casing 2, preferably cylindrical in form, having a threaded-nipple 3- on one side to which the fuel conduit is connected and having a threaded nipple 4 on the other side to which the carbureteror a conduit leading to the carbureter is connected. The nipples.

are also preferably spaced apart longitudinally so that the fuel travels longitudinally of the casing. Secured in the ends of the casing and insulated therefrom by insul at-. ing bushings 5 are electrodes 6 and 7 which are spaced apart to form a spark gap between them, thegap occurring between the I nipples. A high tension interrupted cur rent is applied across the spark gap sothat. sparks in rapid succession occur at the spark. gap. The high tension current may be taken from the ignition system of the engine which may comprise a battery 8 and a high tension coil 9 or which may comprise a magneto. When magneto ignition is employed, it is advisable to provide a magneto having a greater number of contacts than there are engine cylinders and connect the extra contacts to the spark electrodes. I have found that good results are obtained by using an eight cylinder engine magneto on a four cylinder engine and connecting every other magneto contact to a spark electrode, the other electrode being grounded. The magneto employed delivered current at 18,000 volts, but I believe a higher voltage, for instance 50,000 volts, will be more effective.

In Fig. 2, I have shown a form of device foruse on internal combustion engines, in which the electrodes comprise the sparking points 12-13 of a standard spark: plug 14. This produces a cheaper construction and one which may be readily repaired 'by merely renewing the spark plug. The inlet nipple is preferably arranged adjacent the sparking points and the outlet nipple 4 is arranged above the sparking points and the spark plug is preferably inserted at the bottom of the casing so that the gas liberated, due to the passage of the sparks through the -will not collect at the electrodes.

fuel, will rise and flow from the casing and The cascasing is sufliciently large so that the fuel ting practically all of the fuel to be acted on by the. sparks.

In Figs. 3 and 41 have shown a construct1on in which all of the fuel is constrained to pass between the electrodes. This con- ,struction embodies a spark plug 17 having lying in substantially the same plane and provided with an annular shoulder 22 into which the end of the body 18 fits rather snugly andthebody 18 :is provided with apertures 23 through which the fuel may forming the other electrode. The casingis pass into the interior of therbody. The in- I. let mpple 3 occurs belowtheshoulder and the outlet nipple 4 occurs above the shoul-' der, so that all fuel must pass into the body 18 and throughthe annular passage 24-be-;

tween the electrodes 19 and2l, where .it' is I subjected'to theaction of the electric sparks. In Fig. 5, I have shown a form of the ap- 14 or pairs of electrodes are empl'oyed, the

paratus in which a plurality of spark plugs fuel passing the SHCCBSSIVG. pairs of. electrodes successively and being acted on by the sparks at the successive electrodes. The

ploying a large number of pairs of electrodes, the fuel may be flowed quite rapidly, so that large amounts thereof may be treated. This, or other comparable forms of apparatus, may be employed at refineries or central stations for treating fuel in large volume. While I have shown an apparatus employing spark plugs, it is to be understood that pairs of electrodes of any desired form or construction and in any desired number, may be emplo ed.

In Fig. 6, I have shown a fbrm of the apparatus which operates to treat the fuel successfully at comparatively low voltages, such, for instance, as 275 volts. In this form of'construction, one of the electrodes is vibrated or oscillated, moving into and Screwed into the upper end of the casing is a casing 33 from which the electrode 34;, having-a disk head 35, extends into the casing 2. The electrode 34 is movable vertically to separate the heads 32 and 35 to produce a spark between them, the heads being in contact when at rest, and being held in contact b a spring 36. Arranged in the casing 33 s an induction coil comprising an iron core 37, a primary winding 38 and a secondary winding 39. The primary winding is connected in series with the battery 41 and the electrodes so that when the electrodes are in contact or when a spark exists between them, current will flow in the primary winding, inducing a current in the secondary winding, the opposite ends of which are connected to the two electrodes. Secured to the movable electrode is an armature 42. When the battery circuit is closed, the upper electrode 34 will vibrate vertically, causing the production of sparks between the electrodes. This arrangement will produce a hi h tension discharge, but when desirable, o y one coilgimay be employed,

instead of the primary and secondar coils j and the battery connected in series wlth the coil and the electrodes. The inductive kick of the coil, due to the separating of the electrodes caused by energizing the coil, will cause a fat low tension spark to form between the electrodes. The voltage of the spark may be as low as 275 volts.

The passage of the sparks through the fuel produces an evolution of gases which consists mainly of hydrogen, oxygen, carbon monoxid and carbondioxid, in substantially the following proportionby volume; hydrogen 86 parts, oxygen 5% parts, carbon monoxid 5 parts, and carbon dioxid 3% parts. I find also that nitrogen and sulfurous acid are liberated from the fuel due to the action of the electric discharge. The sulfurous acid is probably formed by a combination of nascent hydrogen and ox gen with sulfur in the fuel. The evolution of the gas is free and in considerable quantity, and a large proportion of it is oxygen, indicating the presence of oxygen in the fuel. This oxygen is either chemically combined with the fuel or is present as moisture or is dissolved in the fuel and treatment by my process deoxidizes the fuel. I am of the opinion that the presence of oxygen in the fuel is detrimental, and I believe that when a mixture of air and oxygen containing fuel vapor is heated and compressed that combination of the oxygen with the hydrogen of the fuel occurs, producing water vapor or steam which retards the propagation of the flame through the compressed mixture. ance with the process of my invention, the oxygen is removed and the combustible mixture is more rapidly combustible.

By treating the fuel in accorda plurality of electric sparks through thefuel.

2. The process of reducing the boiling points of the constituent parts of liquid fuel,

which comprises passing a lurality of electric sparks through the fuel 3. he process of treating hydrocarbon oil products for the purpose set forth, which comprises passing a plurality of electric sparks through the product.

4. The process'of treating hydrocarbon 011 products, which comprises subjecting the product to the action of an electric current to liberate oxygen from the product.

The process of treatin hydrocarbon 011 products, which COIIIPIISGS, liberating oxygen from the product, by passing electric s arks therethrough.

6. he process of treating hydrocarbon oil products, which comprises deoxidizing the product.

7. The process of treatin liquid fuel, which comprises passing the uel through a casing and subjecting the moving fuel to the action of a plurality of electric sparks, whereby oxygen is liberated from the fuel.

8. The process of treatin liquid fuel, which comprises passing the fuel through a casing and passing electric sparks throu h the uel while it is passing through t e casin 9. The process of treating li uid fuel to lower its end boiling point, whic comprises flowing the fuel through a passage in which electric sparks are produced in rapid succession. I

10. The process of treating hydrocarbon oil product for the purpose set forth, which comprises subjecting the roduct to the action of rapidly recurrin igh tension electric sparks submerged t erem.

11. The process of treatin liquid fuel, which consists in subjecting t e fuel to the action of an electric current to liberate hy-.

drogen from the fuel.

12. The process of treatin liquid fuel which consists in subjecting t e fuel to the action of an electric current'to liberate hy drogen and oxygen from the fuel.

13. The rocess of treating liquid fuel which conslsts in passing an electric spark through the fuel whereby hydrogen is liberated.

14. The process of treating liquid fuel which conslsts in passing an electric spark through the fuel whereby hydrogen and oxygen are liberated.

15. The process of treating hydrocarbon oil products to improve their qualities, whic comprises subjecting the product to the action of an electric discharge therein.

16. The process of treating hydrocarbon to precipitate the base from'the product.

19. The process of treatinghydrocarbon oil products, which comprises subjecting the hi h product to the action of an electric discharge therein, whereby the oil base is precipitated from the product.

p 20. The process of treating refined hydro- 20 carbon oil products, which comprises subjecting the product to the action of a high tension electric discharge passing therethrough.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set 25 my hand at San Francisco, California, this 17th day of June, 1920.

ELMER E. WICKERSHAM.

In presence of' H. G. PRos'r,

W. W. HEALEY.

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