Patent ID: 7096123

Claim:
A method for mathematically identifying at least one diesel fuel suitable for combustion in an automotive diesel engine and producible from known petroleum blendstocks using known refining processes, including the use of cetane additives (ignition improvers) and oxygenated compounds, comprising the steps of: a) providing a data set comprising a plurality of measurable fuel properties of at least two diesel fuels suitable for combustion in an automotive diesel engine, each of said measurable fuel properties having a numerical value; b) selecting a set of at least two fuel property values from said data set; c) generating from said at least two selected fuel property values a set of at least two eigenvectors using Principal Components Analysis, each of said at least two eigenvectors mathematically representing a naturally-occurring relationship among said selected properties of said diesel fuels and each having an observed weight in each of said diesel fuels in said dataset, said observed weights forming a range of weights for each of said generated eigenvectors; d) optionally generating at least one vector representing the use of diesel fuel additives, including, but not limited to cetane additives (ignition improvers) and oxygenated compounds, augmenting said set of at least two eigenvectors with said at least one generated vector, and identifying for each of said at least one vector a quantitative range of additive usage consistent with the requirements of ASTM 975-02, said quantitative range of additive usage forming a range of weights for said generated vector; e) choosing a numerical weight for each of said at least two eigenvectors, as optionally augmented, wherein said chosen weight falls within said range of weights for said generated eigenvectors; and f) proportionally combining said at least two eigenvectors, as optionally augmented, in accordance with said chosen numerical weights to identify a diesel fuel suitable for combustion in an automotive diesel engine and producible from known petroleum blendstocks using known refining processes, including the use of cetane additives (ignition improvers) and oxygenated compounds.