Patent ID: 7618468

Claim:
A fuel for use in compression ignition internal combustion engines, comprising: as a predominant component organic distillates derived from natural petroleum, and one or more oxygen-containing organic compounds selected from the group consisting of aryl oxygenates of type II and type III in amounts such that the oxygen content of the fuel is in a range from about 0.2 percent to about 10 percent oxygen, where R is hydrogen or a hydrocarbon radical containing from 1 to about 10 carbon atoms, and wherein a source of the aryl oxygenates is the composition formed by a process which comprises: partitioning by distillation an organic feedstock comprising a mixture of organic compounds derived from natural petroleum, the mixture having a gravity ranging from about 10° API to about 75° API to provide at least one low-boiling organic part consisting of a sulfur-lean, mono-aromatic-rich fraction, and a high-boiling organic part consisting of a sulfur-rich, mono-aromatic-lean fraction; contacting a gaseous source of dioxygen with at least a portion of the low-boiling organic part in a liquid reaction medium containing a soluble catalyst system comprising a source of at least one catalyst metal selected from the group consisting of manganese, cobalt, nickel, chromium, vanadium, molybdenum, tungsten, tin, cerium, and a mixture thereof, while maintaining the liquid reaction medium substantially free of halogen and/or halogen-containing compounds, to form a mixture of immiscible phases comprising hydrocarbons, oxygenated organic compounds, water of reaction, and a acidic co-products; separating from the mixture of immiscible phases at least a first organic liquid of low density comprising hydrocarbons, oxygenated organic compounds and first acidic co-products and a second liquid of high density which contains at least portions of the catalyst metal, water of reaction and second acidic co-products; and contacting all or a portion of the separated organic liquid with a neutralizing agent thereby recovering a low-boiling oxygenated product having a low content of acidic co-products.