2373.     ---------------.  [NATIONAL PETROLEUM NEWS.]  Diesel Fuels From the Synthine Process.  Tech. Sec., vol. 36, No. 36, Sept. 6, 1944, p. R585; Fuel Abs., May 1945, no. 2436.

        Synthine (Fischer-Tropsch) process is a source of diesel fuels, which surpass any made from crude petroleum.  Fischer-Tropsch oils are highly paraffinic, and those boiling at 200°-300° have a cetane number of 100, and, when diluted with tar oils or heavy petroleum oils, give a satisfactory Diesel fuel.  A diesel-fuel fraction of about 85 cetane no. can be prepared by cracking Fischer-Tropsch wax.  Straight Synthine diesel fuels have a drawback in their high solidification point, about 2° C.  The cost of Synthine diesel fuels is higher than that for petroleum-derived diesel fuels, but extensive research has been conducted for some years by several companies, and lower costs should result.  It is reported that the Texas Oil Co. is to construct a pilot plant for the Synthine process at its Los Angeles refinery.  The process offers a new way of obtaining high-ignition-quality fuels without upsetting the balance of refinery-gasoline operation.