Explanatory Notes to the Combined Nomenclature of the European Union
Date: 2018-01-10
Institutions: Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union, European Commission
Subjects: Combined Nomenclature, aviation fuel, common customs tariff, fuel oil, paraffin








C_2018007EN.01000301.xml










10.1.2018   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 7/3





Explanatory Notes to the Combined Nomenclature of the European Union
(2018/C 7/03)
Pursuant to Article 9(1)(a) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 (1), the Explanatory Notes to the Combined Nomenclature of the European Union (2) are hereby amended as follows:

On page 125, the explanatory note to subheadings ‘2710 19 11 to 2710 19 29 Medium oils’ is replaced by the following text:








‘2710 19 11 to 2710 19 29




Medium oils

See additional note 2(c) to this chapter.
Kerosene is used for a wide range of different purposes, for example as fuel for airplanes engines or for heating.
Kerosene is a medium oil with a distillation range according to the EN ISO 3405 method (equivalent to the ASTM D 86 method) approximately between 130 °C to 320 °C.
The images attached to this explanatory note are merely indicative of chromatograms of one category of products classifiable in each of the three subheadings concerned.’






On page 125, the explanatory note to subheading ‘2710 19 21 Jet fuel’ is replaced by the following text:








‘2710 19 21




Jet fuel

This subheading covers kerosene type jet fuel. This jet fuel complies with the provisions of additional note 2(c) to this chapter.
The gas chromatographic profile of kerosene-type jet fuel, for instance the most commonly used jet fuel A-1, is characteristic of an oil obtained by the distillation of a crude oil and also by other petrochemical processes. The chain length of the alkanes varies between about 10 and 18 carbon atoms. The aromatic content may be up to 25 % by volume. Its flash point is generally above 38 °C according to the ISO 13736 method. The freezing point is usually not above –40 °C.
Jet fuel may contain the following additives: antioxidants, corrosion inhibitors, icing inhibitors, tracer dyes.
GAS CHROMATOGRAPHIC PROFILE OF JET FUEL TYPE A-1 (KEROSENE) SimDis ASTM D 2887 extended (equivalent to the ISO 3924 method)




 ’






On page 127, the explanatory note to subheading ‘2710 19 25 Other’ is replaced by the following text:








‘2710 19 25




Other

This subheading covers kerosene other than jet fuel. The kerosene of this subheading complies with the provisions of additional note 2(c) to this chapter.
The gas chromatographic profile of ‘other’ kerosene is characteristic of an oil obtained by the distillation of a crude oil.
This subheading also includes:






—


oils used in lamps, with a low aromatic and olefin content to prevent the formation of soot during combustion;










—


oils with a narrow range of distillation, with a gas chromatographic profile composed only by a fraction of the GC image below.




In some cases chemical markers are present.
This subheading excludes mixtures of kerosene with other mineral oils or organic solvents.
GAS CHROMATOGRAPHIC PROFILE OF KEROSENE OTHER THAN JET-FUEL SimDis ASTM D 2887 extended (equivalent to the ISO 3924 method)




 ’






On page 129, the explanatory note to subheading ‘2710 19 29 Other’ is replaced by the following text:








‘2710 19 29




Other

This subheading covers medium oils other than kerosene of subheadings 2710 19 21 and 2710 19 25. The oils of this subheading comply with the provisions of additional note 2(c) to this chapter.
Usually, products of this subheading are obtained by one or more chemical-physical processes which can significantly alter the chemical composition of those products so as to make them suitable for certain industrial uses. In certain cases, the modification of molecular composition of those products can be detected using GC or SimDis while for other kinds of products more accurate determinations are necessary (e.g. gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS)).
An example of a SimDis profile of these oils is represented by n-paraffin as shown below.
GAS CHROMATOGRAPHIC PROFILE OF A N-PARAFFIN SimDis ASTM D 2887 extended (equivalent to the ISO 3924 method)






Another example of products of this subheading are those obtained by a multistep process that includes:






—


extraction of linear paraffins;










—


hydrogenation of the de-paraffinated residue;










—


fractionation by distillation of the hydrogenated and de-paraffinated residue in products with shorter carbon cut.




These products consist of saturated hydrocarbons, mainly branched and cyclic, with an aromatic content far less than 1 %. An example of a SimDis profile for this kind of products is shown below:
ASTM D2887 extended (equivalent to the ISO 3924 Method)
Boiling point (°C)















SIMDIS ASTM D 2887 extended correlation to ASTM D 86




Recovered


BP


Recovered


BP


Recovered


BP


Recovered


BP




Mass %


°C


Mass %


°C


Mass %


°C


Mass %


°C




IBP


234,2 


30,0 


241,1 


70,0 


246,5 


FBP


255,9 




5,0 


240,0 


40,0 


242,2 


80,0 


247,0 


 


 




10,0 


240,9 


50,0 


243,4 


90,0 


250,8 


 


 




20,0 


241,0 


60,0 


243,8 


95,0 


254,5 


 


 




The use of GC-MS technique may deliver a profile like that shown below as an example:






 


x-axis: time (minutes)










 


y-axis: relative abundance








GC-MS total ion chromatogram (TIC)

This profile has been obtained with the following experimental conditions:






Column


Zebron ZB5-MS (or similar)




Column length


30 m




I.D.


0,25  mm




d. f.


0,25  μm




Mass range


35 - 600




Ion source


250 °C




Start time


3 min




Split rate


1:60




Injector temperature


250 °C




Injection Volume


1 μL




Transfer Line


275 °C




Temperature program:


 




Starting temperature


40 °C




Starting time


3 min




Gradient 1


2,5  °C/min up to 270 °C




Final time


10 min




This profile shows the following distribution:











CARBON CUT




 


C10


C11


C12


C13


C14



TOTAL





n-Paraffins


0,1 


0,6 


4,8 


1


0



6,5 





Mono-methyl paraffins


0


1,5 


14,2 


15,7 


1,8 



33,2 





Others iso-paraffins


0


0,9 


10,6 


20,1 


0,6 



32,2 





Cyclo-paraffins


0


1,2 


6,1 


16,3 


0,3 



24,0 





Decaline


0,2 


2


1,4 


0,6 


0



4,2 






TOTAL




0,3 




6,2 




37,1 




53,7 




2,7 




100’











(1)  Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff (OJ L 256, 7.9.1987, p. 1).

(2)  OJ C 76, 4.3.2015, p. 1.