Patent ID: 7585337

Claim:
An automated method of making a fuel composition, comprising: identifying a predetermined Reid Vapor Pressure of the fuel composition; charging one or more hydrocarbon feedstock, optionally one or more oxygenate feedstock, and optionally one or more additives into a blending tank to make a fuel composition mixture, each of the one or more hydrocarbon feedstock, one or more oxygenate feedstock, and one or more additive feed having a charge rate; determining amounts of each of the one or more hydrocarbon feedstock, the one or more oxygenate feedstock, and the one or more additives charged into the blending tank to make the fuel composition mixture; determining a current Reid Vapor Pressure of the fuel composition mixture in the blending tank; comparing the predetermined Reid Vapor Pressure of the fuel composition with the current Reid Vapor Pressure of the fuel composition mixture; and adjusting the charge rate of at least one of the one or more hydrocarbon feedstocks, optionally the one or more oxygenate feedstocks, and optionally the one or more additives into the blending tank in response to the amounts of each of the one or more hydrocarbon feedstock, the one or more oxygenate feedstock, and the one or more additives charged into the blending tank and comparing the predetermined Reid Vapor Pressure of the fuel composition and the current Reid Vapor Pressure of the fuel composition mixture to provide the fuel composition having the predetermined Reid Vapor Pressure, adjusting the charge rate is controlled by a trained neural network, the trained neural network operative to determine adjustments to the charge rate of at least one of the one or more hydrocarbon feedstocks, the one or more optional oxygenate feedstocks, and one or more optional additives into the blending tank based upon the current properties of the fuel composition mixture.