JP2008514738A - Method and system for producing cylinder oil by modifying spent hydrocarbon fluid - Google Patents

Abstract

  The present invention relates to a method of making cylinder oil (and corresponding system), which method determines a TBN of at least one initial fluid, determines a desired TBN of the cylinder oil (102), and at least Of the at least one initial fluid (101) by adjusting the TBN of the at least one initial fluid (101) in response to blending the one initial fluid (101) with a suitable additive (103). It consists of reforming. In this way, a method (and system) for modifying the initial fluid is obtained that produces cylinder oil by adjusting the TBN. This provides a significant economic benefit because the lubricant that would otherwise have to be disposed of can be reused as a total loss cylinder lubricant. Furthermore, there is no need to purchase cylinder oil. The oil used to blend with the cylinder oil, when replenished, has a more consistent quality as opposed to traditional practice, thus reducing mechanical wear and the like. Therefore, replenishment of the initial fluid provides improved and consistent initial fluid quality, resulting in significantly reduced component wear and equipment life cycle costs. Furthermore, environmentally friendly methods / systems are provided because waste in the form of used oil that is discarded after prolonged use is reduced by conversion to cylinder oil.

Description

  The present invention relates to a method of making a total loss lubricant. The invention further relates to a system for producing a total loss lubricant.

  Two-stroke crosshead engines used in marine or stationary applications are equipped with two separate lubricant systems. One lubrication system includes what is referred to as system oil, which is typically used for lubrication and cooling of engine bearings and for activation and / or control of, for example, oil-cooled pistons and various valves. The other lubrication system contains total loss lubricant (cylinder oil), which is usually used to lubricate engine cylinders, piston rings and piston skirts.

  In a typical two-stroke crosshead engine, cylinder oil is constantly consumed with every engine revolution, whereas system oil is not consumed in principle (except for small unintentional leaks). Lubrication systems that include cylinder oil are often referred to as “all-loss” lubrication systems because the oil is consumed. The use and various types of both system oil and cylinder oil are well known in the art.

Cylinder oils generally contain certain additives that serve to reduce, minimize or neutralize the acid level of the cylinder system.
Common cylinder oils usually have an SAE (Society of Automotive Engineering) viscosity equivalent to about 50, and are usually used to neutralize acidic products produced in the combustion process. It has a total alkali number (TBN) of about 40 to 70. Typical system oils have a relatively low TBN, generally less than 10 and usually have a SAE viscosity of about 30. These typical values can also vary depending on the actual application and the specific design of the system in which the oil is used.

  Since recent two-stroke crosshead engine designs include control and / or activation, such as electronic and / or hydraulic valves, the minimum performance requirements for system oil are traditional mechanical control / Compared to the initial design using activation, there is a substantial increase.

  However, 4-stroke trunk piston (diesel) engines typically use only a single type of oil for lubrication and cooling. Such engines are used in marine secondary / auxiliary or propulsion engines, or stationary power generation or for liquid / gas transfer applications. Such used oils typically have a SAE viscosity of about 30 or 40. On the other hand, two-stroke crosshead engine system oils generally stay within their specified performance limits for extended periods, whereas trunk piston engine oils are constantly affected by exposure to the combustion process. However, due to the inherent design of the two-stroke crosshead engine, the used cylinder lubricant always leaks through the piston rod stuffing box and contaminates the system oil. Therefore, the useful properties of both trunk piston engine oil and system oil will deteriorate over time, eventually having to be refilled or completely replaced. Similarly, other lubricating oils used in on-board containers or fixed sites such as hydraulic oil, gear oil, turbine oil, heavy duty diesel oil, system oil, trunk piston engine oil, compressor oil, etc. It deteriorates over time due to contamination, oxidation, hydrolysis, etc. and must be replenished or replaced at certain intervals.

  Lubricating oil performance levels must generally be measured periodically to ensure that the limits of the components using the oil do not exceed certain limits. An important cause of performance loss is caused by particle contamination. These particles contain combustion by-products and wear components that are partially removed by the oil separator. However, in the case of a two-stroke crosshead engine, one of the sources of contamination is the used cylinder oil leaking through the stuffing box, increasing both the viscosity and alkalinity of the system oil over time, and this process Cannot be reversed by the oil separator.

The wear loss of diesel engines is mainly viscose characteristics. Increasing the viscosity of the system oil results in reduced efficiency, increased fuel consumption and increased exhaust.
In order to produce cylinder oil, prior art methods and systems generally blend a suitable base oil with suitable additives and / or additive packages to obtain a fully formulated cylinder lubricant. This is typically done in a dedicated lubricant blending plant and the resulting cylinder lubricant must be delivered to a ship or offshore plant for use in the engine.

Prior art methods and systems do not mix these types of oils except for the unavoidable mixing of cylinder oil and system oil described above. In addition, some prior art methods / systems also suggest changes in lubricant flow rate or properties in response to actual engine conditions (see, eg, US Pat. No. 6,779,505). However, such methods and systems do not address the degradation of oil due to contamination or other processes and the possibility of reusing these used oils as cylinder oil.
US Pat. No. 6,779,505

It is an object of the present invention to provide a method (and corresponding system) for making cylinder oil and to solve the above (and other) drawbacks of the prior art. A further object is to provide this in a cost-effective and simplified manner.
A further object of the present invention is to allow improved performance of non-total loss lubricants over time and thus more efficient use of both non-total loss and cylinder oils.

These objectives are achieved in particular by a method (and corresponding system) for making cylinder oil, which determines the TBN of at least one initial fluid, determines the desired TBN of the cylinder oil, and at least 1 Reforming at least one initial fluid by adjusting the TBN of the at least one initial fluid in response to blending the seed initial fluid with a suitable additive.
In this method, a method for producing a cylinder oil by modifying the initial fluid is obtained simply by preparing TBN.

  This realizes significant economic benefits because the lubricant that would otherwise have to be disposed of can be reused as a full loss cylinder lubricant. Furthermore, there is no need to purchase cylinder oil. The oil used to blend with the cylinder oil is of a more consistent quality when replenished (unlike traditional practice), thus reducing mechanical wear and the like. Therefore, replenishment of the initial fluid provides improved and consistent initial fluid quality, resulting in significantly reduced component wear and equipment life cycle costs. Furthermore, environmentally friendly methods / systems are provided because waste in the form of used oil that is discarded after prolonged use is reduced by conversion to cylinder oil.

Preferably, at least one of the initial fluids is at least partially used oil. This provides a fully formulated cylinder lubricant by modifying the spent initial fluid TBN.
In preferred embodiments, suitable additives include at least one base.
In a further preferred embodiment, the at least one base is
1. 1. basic salts of alkali or alkaline earth elements, and / or 2. detergents and / or Consists of a dispersant.

  The alkali / alkaline earth element may be K, Na, Ca, Ba, Mg, or the like. The basic salt may belong to an inorganic chemical group such as an oxide, hydroxide, carbonate, sulfate or the like. The detergent may belong to an organic chemical family such as, for example, sulfonate, salicylate, phenate, sulfophenate, Mannich-base. The dispersant may belong to an organic chemical family such as succinimide.

In a preferred embodiment, the cylinder oil is used in reciprocating internal combustion engine engines used for marine or stationary applications.
In yet another embodiment, the reciprocating internal combustion engine is a two-stroke crosshead engine.

The method according to the invention and its embodiments are preferably used in offshore, onsite or onshore plants.
Preferably, the cylinder oil is produced with a TBN corresponding to the nature of the fuel oil and / or actual engine operating conditions.

In another preferred embodiment, the TBN of the cylinder oil is selected based on the sulfur content of the fuel oil.
The initial fluid is preferably a hydrocarbon fluid. In one embodiment, the hydrocarbon is a lubricating oil.

In a preferred embodiment, the lubricating oil is used lubricating oil, i.e., lubricating oil that has been used at least partially elsewhere.
The used lubricating oil is preferably selected from a group of lubricating oils such as hydraulic oil, gear oil, system oil, trunk piston engine oil, turbine oil, heavy duty diesel oil, and compressor oil.

In a preferred embodiment, the produced Linder oil is based on a two-stroke engine system oil that is tapped and replenished continuously, almost continuously or intermittently from an existing system.
In another preferred embodiment, the cylinder oil produced is based on a mixture of lubricating oils that are tapped and replenished continuously, almost continuously or intermittently from existing systems.

The oil used as the initial fluid may be used, for example, or may be used or taken directly from an unused, ie any unused lube oil storage tank.
In another embodiment, the method further comprises using suitable instrumentation to control the quality of the finished lubricant.

  The invention also relates to a system corresponding to the method of the invention and having the same advantages. More specifically, the present invention also relates to a system for providing cylinder oil that determines a TBN of at least one initial fluid, determines a desired TBN of the cylinder oil, and at least It comprises an apparatus for the modification of at least one initial fluid by blending one initial fluid with a suitable additive and adjusting the TBN of the at least one initial fluid accordingly.

Advantageous embodiments of the system according to the invention are defined in the subclaims and are described in detail below. A system embodiment corresponding to a method embodiment has the same advantages for the same reason.
These and other aspects of the invention are apparent from and will be elucidated with reference to the exemplary embodiments illustrated in the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows a schematic block diagram of an embodiment according to the present invention. The figure shows a system oil loop comprising a cylinder oil (102), a total loss cylinder lubricant supply comprising a basic additive (103) and at least one initial fluid (101). Further shown are a two-stroke crosshead engine (100), a waste tank (106), an unused system oil tank (105), a separator (107) and a blending device (104) for carrying out the present invention. .

  According to the present invention, the cylinder oil determines the TBN of at least one initial fluid, determines the desired TBN of the cylinder oil (102), and converts the at least one initial fluid (101) to a suitable additive ( 103) is made by modification of at least one initial fluid (101) that adjusts the TBN of at least one initial fluid (101) in response to blending. This is preferably done by a blending device (104). The at least one initial fluid is preferably at least partially used oil. As a result, a completely blended cylinder lubricant is obtained by modifying the TBN of the waste oil.

  The adjustment of TBN preferably includes adjustment of at least one additive level or addition of one or more additives, wherein the additive comprises at least one alkali or alkaline earth element basic salt. Including seed bases and / or detergents and / or dispersants.

  The alkali / alkaline earth element may be K, Na, Ca, Ba, Mg, or the like. The basic salt may belong to an inorganic chemical group such as an oxide, a hydroxide, a carbonate, or a sulfate. The cleaning agent may belong to an organic chemical group such as sulfonate, salicylate, phenate, sulfophenate, Mannich-base, for example. The dispersant may belong to an organic chemical family such as succinimide.

  As described above, the cylinder oil can also be used in reciprocating internal combustion engine engines (eg, 2-stroke crosshead engines) used for marine or stationary applications. The production of cylinder oil is very suitable for offshore or on-site applications because of its simplicity and the necessary initial fluids and additives are usually available.

Cylinder oil production can also take into account additional aspects such as actual engine requirements and fuel sulfur content.
The used initial fluid may be hydraulic oil, gear oil, system oil, trunk piston engine oil, turbine oil, heavy duty diesel oil, compressor oil, and the like.

It is preferred that the initial fluid is system oil and the total loss lubricant is cylinder oil.
In one embodiment, the cylinder oil that is made is based on a two-stroke engine system oil that is tapped and replenished continuously, nearly continuously or intermittently from an existing system.
Alternatively, the cylinder oil produced is based on a mixture of oils that are tapped and replenished continuously, almost continuously or intermittently from existing systems.

The oil may be used, for example, or it may be used or taken directly from any unused lube oil storage tank or the like.
An important advantage of the present invention is that the main engine need only supply a new system oil that is fully formulated. The system oil is then used for its traditional purposes and a portion of the system oil is blended with additives to adjust the TBN to be compatible with the cylinder oil according to the present invention. This is because all currently known two-stroke system oils are available as initial oils for cylinder oils using the present invention, thus increasing the availability of the required oil, Increase competition between supplies. In addition, where applicable, other initial fluids, such as, but not limited to, used hydraulic oil, gear oil, trunk piston engine oil or compressor oil, process of making cylinder oil. The procurement cost can be significantly reduced.

  In addition, as part of the initial fluid is now reused in cylinder oil manufacturers that must be replenished (as opposed to traditional use), this results in the problem of gradual degradation being minimized. Or avoided.

  In a preferred embodiment, continuous, near continuous or intermittent system oil tapping from a two-stroke main engine and / or other suitable initial fluid is used as the basis for making cylinder oil according to the present invention. It is proposed to be used as

  The additive or additive package used as a modifier serves several purposes, but is usually always used to adjust the TBN of the oil. This process can also be used to provide TBN levels that flexibly correspond to actual fuel oil properties and engine operating parameter requirements.

The production of cylinder oil / cylinder oil according to the present invention is very suitable for on-site production, for example, ship / container, offshore equipment, stationary plant, etc. due to its simplicity.
In the claims, any reference signs placed between parentheses shall not be construed as limiting the claim. The word “consisting of” does not exclude the presence of elements or steps other than those listed in a claim. The word “a” or “an” preceding an element does not exclude the presence of a plurality of such elements.

1 is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment according to the present invention.

Claims (32)

  A method of making a cylinder oil, wherein the TBN of at least one initial fluid (101) is determined, the desired TBN of the cylinder oil (102) is determined, and at least one initial fluid (101) is suitable A method comprising modifying at least one initial fluid (101) by blending with an additive (103) and adjusting the TBN of the at least one initial fluid (101) accordingly.   The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one initial fluid is at least partially used oil.   The method according to claim 1, wherein the suitable additive comprises at least one base. The at least one base is
4. A method according to claim 3, comprising a basic salt of an alkali or alkaline earth element, and / or a detergent and / or a dispersant.   The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the cylinder oil is used in a reciprocating internal combustion engine used for marine or stationary applications.   The method of claim 5, wherein the reciprocating internal combustion engine is a two-stroke crosshead engine.   7. A method according to any one of the preceding claims for use at sea, onsite or onshore plant.   8. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the cylinder oil is produced with a TBN corresponding to the nature of the fuel oil and / or actual engine operating conditions.   9. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the TBN of the cylinder oil is selected based on the sulfur content of the fuel oil.   10. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the initial fluid is a hydrocarbon fluid.   The method of claim 10, wherein the hydrocarbon fluid is a lubricating oil.   The method of claim 11, wherein the lubricant is a used lubricant.   13. The used lubricating oil is selected from the group of hydraulic oil, gear oil, system oil, trunk piston engine oil, turbine oil, heavy duty diesel oil, compressor oil, and the like. the method of.   14. The cylinder oil according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the cylinder oil produced is based on a two-stroke engine system oil that is tapped and replenished continuously, substantially continuously or intermittently from an existing system. The method described.   14. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the cylinder oil produced is based on a mixture of lubricating oils that is tapped and replenished continuously, substantially continuously or intermittently from an existing system. .   16. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising the step of using suitable instrumentation to control the quality of the finished lubricant.   A system for providing cylinder oil, wherein the TBN of at least one initial fluid is determined, the desired TBN of the cylinder oil (102) is determined, and at least one initial fluid (101) is added to a suitable additive ( 103) and a system comprising an apparatus (104) for modifying at least one initial fluid (101) by blending with it and adjusting the TBN of the at least one initial fluid (101) accordingly. .   The system of claim 17, wherein the at least one initial fluid is at least partially used oil.   19. A system according to any one of claims 17 to 18, wherein the suitable additive consists of at least one base. The at least one base is
20. The system of claim 19, comprising a basic salt of an alkali or alkaline earth element, and / or a detergent and / or a dispersant.   21. A system according to any one of claims 17 to 20, wherein the cylinder oil is used in a reciprocating internal combustion engine used for marine or stationary applications.   The system of claim 21, wherein the reciprocating internal combustion engine is a two-stroke crosshead engine.   23. A system according to any one of claims 17 to 22, wherein the system is used at sea, on-site or on land plant.   24. A system according to any one of claims 17 to 23, wherein the cylinder oil is produced with a TBN corresponding to the nature of the fuel oil and / or actual engine operating conditions.   25. A system according to any one of claims 17 to 24, wherein the cylinder oil TBN is selected based on the sulfur content of the fuel oil.   26. A system according to any one of claims 17 to 25, wherein the initial fluid is a hydrocarbon fluid.   27. The system of claim 26, wherein the hydrocarbon fluid is a lubricating oil.   28. The system of claim 27, wherein the lubricating oil is a used lubricating oil.   29. The used lubricating oil is selected from the group of hydraulic oil, gear oil, system oil, trunk piston engine oil, turbine oil, heavy duty diesel oil, compressor oil, etc. System.   30. A method according to any one of claims 17 to 29, wherein the cylinder oil produced is based on a two-stroke engine system oil that is tapped and replenished continuously, substantially continuously or intermittently from an existing system. The described system.   30. A system according to any one of claims 17 to 29, wherein the cylinder oil produced is based on a mixture of lubricating oils that is tapped and replenished continuously, substantially continuously or intermittently from an existing system. .   32. A system according to any one of claims 17 to 31, wherein the system further comprises suitable instrumentation that can be used to control the quality of the finished lubricant.

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