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AssigneeConoco Inc.
InventorsH. Ernest Romine, James R. McConaghy, Jr., John A. Rodgers
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An improved process is disclosed for producing a unique metals-containing anisotropic pitch suitable for carbon fiber manufacture. Soluble, aromatic-organometallic compounds are added to a carbonaceous feedstock which is substantially free of mesophase pitch and the resulting composition is heat soaked to produce an isotropic pitch product containing mesogens and soluble, aromatic-organometallic compounds. Next, the pitch product is solvent fractionated to separate mesogens which contain metals from the organometallic compounds. The metals-containing mesogens are heated to a temperature sufficient to cause fusion to produce a metals-containing mesophase pitch. In another method, the carbonaceous feedstock is heat soaked to produce an isotropic pitch product containing mesogens and high molecular weight, soluble, aromatic-organometallic compounds are added to the mesogen containing isotropic pitch product prior to solvent fractionation. Metals-containing carbon fibers produced from the mesophase pitch exhibit enhanced stabilization, tensile strength and modulus properties. Alternatively, the solvent fractionation or separation is conducted under supercritical extraction conditions to produce a metals-containing mesophase pitch. Organometallic compounds may be added to the carbonaceous feedstock either prior to or after the heat soak step.
A graphitizable, metals-containing, spinnable mesophase pitch which contains from about 50 PPM to about 20,000 PPM metals from at least one soluble, aromatic-organometallic compound, said pitch having a softening point of from about 230° C. to about 400° C.
A process for producing a pitch which comprises:
A process for producing a mesophase pitch which comprises:
A process for producing a mesophase pitch which comprises:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.