Patent ID: 8551748

Claim:
A process for upgrading a liquid hydrocarbon fuel by reducing an aromatic content, a sulfur content and a nitrogen content of the fuel, the process comprising: b. contacting a biocatalyst comprising a P. putida IOC5a1(MTCC No. 5385) microbe modified via transposon-mediated Tn5 mutagenisis with the liquid hydrocarbon fuel in an aqueous medium to transform at least one of an aromatic-containing compound, a sulfur compound, and a nitrogen containing compound present in the liquid hydrocarbon fuel to polar substances; c. subjecting the resultant mixture of the biocatalyst and the liquid hydrocarbon fuel to a process of bioconversion; then d. removing the polar substances by liquid-liquid extraction with a polar solvent to obtain a dearomatized, desulphurised and denitrogenated liquid hydrocarbon fuel; and e. recovering an upgraded liquid hydrocarbon fuel.