Method for producing pao-based circular products from recycled used oil feedstocks

Abstract

Processes for producing circular polyalphaolefins and polyalphaolefin-based products from used oils include the steps of introducing a used oil composition, or a feedstock containing a used oil composition and at least one other liquid, fuel, or oil, to a cracking unit to produce ethylene, oligomerizing the ethylene to form desirable normal α-olefins, oligomerizing the normal α-olefins into oligomers thereof, and hydrogenating the oligomers to form polyalphaolefins. The polyalphaolefin is mixed with additives and/or other oils to result in a product composition, which can be used in various end-use applications and then recycled into the process. In accordance with International Sustainability and Carbon Certificate standards, the product composition can be defined as circular, bio-circular, or bio- as determined by the mass balance attribution and/or the free attribution approach.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A process comprising:
 (a) providing a used oil composition;   (b) optionally, combining the used oil composition with at least one other liquid, fuel, or oil to produce a feedstock;   (c) introducing the feedstock or the used oil composition into a cracking unit to produce a cracking composition comprising ethylene; and   (d) contacting the ethylene and an ethylene oligomerization catalyst system in an ethylene oligomerization reactor under ethylene oligomerization conditions to produce an oligomer product comprising C 4 -C 30+  normal alpha olefins.   
     
     
         2 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the used oil composition is recycled from wind turbine lubricants, engine oils, transmission fluids, CVT fluids, axle fluids, industrial gear oils, compressor oils, dielectric fluids, heat transfer fluids, immersion cooling fluids for computers, hydraulic fluids, fiber optic cable filling gels, drilling fluids, oils used in lotions and creams, shampoos, hair care products, greases, gas turbine lubricants, metal-working fluids, textile fluids, bearing oils, bio-based oils, vegetable oils, alpha-olefin waxes, gun oils, or any combination thereof. 
     
     
         3 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the used oil composition:
 is characterized by a KV100 of from 2 to 150 cSt, a VI of from 80 to 210, a flashpoint greater than or equal to 130° C., or any combination thereof;   contains circular, bio-circular, or bio-polyalphaolefins;   contains one or more used Group I-V base stocks;   contains less than 1 wt. %, independently, of Ca, Zn, S, and O; or   any combination thereof.   
     
     
         4 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the used oil composition is combined with the at least one other liquid, fuel, or oil, which comprises a fossil fuel, a pyrolysis oil, a bio-based liquid, a natural gas liquid, or any combination thereof. 
     
     
         5 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the cracking unit comprises a steam cracker and/or a fluid catalytic cracker. 
     
     
         6 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the process results in a pure component cracking performance increase from 1 to 40%, or from 10 to 40%, and/or results in a blend component cracking performance increase from 0.1 to 10%, or from 0.2 to 5%, as compared to an otherwise identical feedstock that contains pyrolysis oil instead of the used oil composition. 
     
     
         7 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein fouling in the cracking unit is reduced by from 2 to 60% as compared to an otherwise identical feedstock that contains pyrolysis oil instead of the used oil composition. 
     
     
         8 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein step (d) comprises contacting the ethylene, the ethylene oligomerization catalyst system, and an organic reaction medium in the oligomerization reactor, wherein the organic reaction medium comprises a saturated aliphatic hydrocarbon, an aromatic hydrocarbon, a linear α-olefin, or any combination thereof. 
     
     
         9 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the oligomer product comprises C 6 -C 30  normal α-olefins, or C 6 -C 12  normal α-olefins, or 1-hexene and 1-octene, or from 50 to 90 wt. % 1-hexene and 1-octene. 
     
     
         10 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the process further comprises a step of separating a 1-hexene stream, a 1-octene stream, a 1-decene stream, a 1-dodecene stream, or any combination thereof, from the oligomer product. 
     
     
         11 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the process further comprises a step of contacting an oligomerization catalyst composition with a feed stream comprising a C 6  to C 12  alpha olefin monomer in an oligomerization reactor under oligomerization conditions to produce an oligomerization product comprising oligomers of the alpha olefin monomer, the oligomers comprising dimers, trimers, and/or tetramers. 
     
     
         12 . The process of  claim 11 , wherein the feed stream comprises the alpha olefin monomer and from 0.1 to 99 wt. % of a 1-hexene stream, a 1-octene stream, a 1-decene stream, a 1-dodecene stream, or any combination thereof. 
     
     
         13 . The process of  claim 11 , wherein the oligomerization catalyst composition comprises a metallocene catalyst system, a Ziegler-Natta catalyst system, a chromium catalyst system, a Lewis acid system, an acid clay, an aluminum halide, a peroxide, an ionic liquid catalyst, or any combination thereof. 
     
     
         14 . The process of  claim 11 , wherein the process further comprises a step of discharging an effluent stream from the oligomerization reactor and separating unreacted alpha olefin monomer, the oligomerization product, and the catalyst composition. 
     
     
         15 . The process of  claim 11 , wherein the process further comprises a step of hydrogenating at least a portion of the oligomerization product to form a polyalphaolefin. 
     
     
         16 . The process of  claim 15 , wherein the hydrogenating is performed in the presence of hydrogen and a metallic hydrogenation catalyst comprising cobalt, nickel, palladium, platinum, or a combination thereof, optionally supported on a solid carrier. 
     
     
         17 . The process of  claim 15 , wherein the polyalphaolefin has:
 a flashpoint greater than or equal to 130° C.;   a pour point less than or equal to 20° C.;   a kinematic viscosity (KV100) in a range from 1.5 to 300 cSt;   a viscosity index in a range from 80 to 210; or   any combination thereof.   
     
     
         18 . The process of  claim 15 , wherein the polyalphaolefin is a circular, bio-circular or a bio-product. 
     
     
         19 . The process of  claim 15 , wherein the process further comprises a step of preparing a product composition comprising the polyalphaolefin. 
     
     
         20 . The process of  claim 19 , wherein the product composition:
 comprises one or more additives and/or one or more base oils; and   the product composition is a lubricant oil, a heat transfer fluid, an immersion cooling fluid, or a dielectric fluid.   
     
     
         21 . The process of  claim 1 , further comprising a step of certifying any one or more of products produced by the process as circular in accordance with International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) standards, based upon a weight or fraction of circular product attributable to pyrolysis oil or plastic waste or the used oil composition determined by mass balance and a free attribution method.