Abstract
A promising production route for a high-quality base stock for lubricants is the oligomerization of high molecular-weight olefins in a high energy efficiency system. Oligomerization of 1-decene (C10) was conducted in a microwave-assisted system over a HY zeolite catalyst at different reaction temperatures and times. Higher reaction temperature resulted in increasing formation of dimers and trimers. The oligomerization reaction yielded 80% conversion, 54.2% dimer product, 22.3% trimer product and 3.4% heavier product at 483 K for a reaction time of 3 h. The best fit kinetic model for the dimerization reaction was formulated from an assumption of no vacant reaction sites. For the trimerization reaction, a molecule of dimer (C20) formed on the active site, interacted with a molecule of 1-decene in the bulk solution to form a molecule of trimer (C30). Apparent activation energies for the dimerization and trimerization reactions were 70.8 ± 0.8 and 83.6 ± 0.9 kJ/mol, respectively. The C13-NMR spectrum indicated that the oligomer product contained a significant portion of highly branched hydrocarbons, causing a substantial reduction in the viscosity index compared to conventional poly-alpha olefin lubricant (PAO).
Highlights
A lubricant base stock with high thermal stability is crucial to achieve long-term machinery performance, especially for military equipment, aircraft and heavy-duty internal combustion engines that operate under harsh environmental conditions
The ∆Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) values of all developed kinetic equations for the dimerization and trimerization reactions are compared in Figures S1 and S2, respectively
According to the lowest ∆AIC value corresponding to the best fit model, R D,2.1 was the best kinetic model, reflecting dominance of the dimerization reaction at reaction temperature of 423 K and neglecting the vacant sites
Summary
A lubricant base stock with high thermal stability is crucial to achieve long-term machinery performance, especially for military equipment, aircraft and heavy-duty internal combustion engines that operate under harsh environmental conditions. Synthetic lubricants belonging to the poly-alpha olefin (PAO group IV) have higher retail costs but offer more effective performance than other groups of lubricants, with better thermal stability and longer oil change intervals. Current production technology of synthetic-type lubricants is based on the oligomerization of ethylene which is produced from petroleum oil by an energy-intensive process, known as steam cracking, causing high production costs. Especially 1-decene can be used to produce synthetic lubricant base stock. 1-Decene is in a liquid state and much easier to handle compared with ethylene gas Especially 1-decene can be used to produce synthetic lubricant base stock. 1-Decene can be prepared from 1-decanol derived from the hydrogenation of fatty acids of renewable vegetable oils [1]. 1-Decene is in a liquid state and much easier to handle compared with ethylene gas
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