All The Claims

1. A compound of formula I:
wherein R1, R2, R3 and R4 are independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, a C1 to C4 alkyl group and a moiety of formula \u2014CH2NHR5 provided that at least one R1, R2, R3 and R4 is a moiety of formula \u2014CH2NHR5 wherein R5 is a C8 to C28 aliphatic group.
2. The compound of claim 1 wherein R1, R2 and R4 are hydrogen and R3 is a moiety of formula \u2014CH2NHR5 wherein R5 is a C10 to C28 aliphatic group.
3. The compound of claim 2 wherein R5 is C10 to C18 aliphatic group.
4. The compound of claim 1 having the formula II:
wherein R6 and R7 are independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, a C1 to C4 alkyl group and a moiety of formula \u2014CH2NHR8 provided that at least one R6 and R7 is a moiety of formula \u2014CH2NHR8 wherein R8 is a C8 to C28 aliphatic group.
5. The compound of claim 4 wherein R6 is hydrogen.
6. The compound of claim 4, wherein R7 is hydrogen.
7. A process for preparing an aminomethyl-substituted imidazole compound comprising, reacting
(a) an imidazole compound having the formula III
wherein R11, R12, R13 and R14 are independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen and a C1 to C4 alkyl group wherein at least one of R11, R12, R13 and R14 is hydrogen;
(b) formaldehyde or a formaldehyde-producing reagent; and
(c) an amine of having the formula
H2N\u2014R15
wherein R15 is a C8 to C28 aliphatic group.
8. The process of claim 7 wherein R15 is C10 to C18 aliphatic group.
9. The process of claim 7 wherein R11, R12, R13 and R14 are hydrogen.
10. A product produced according to the process of claim 7.
11. A lubricating oil composition comprising a major amount of an oil of lubricating viscosity and from 0.01 to 5 weight percent of one or more compounds having the formula
wherein R1, R2, R3 and R4 are independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, a C1 to C4 alkyl group and a moiety of formula \u2014CH2NHR5 provided that at least one R1, R2, R3 and R4 is a moiety of formula \u2014CH2NHR5 wherein R5 is a C8 to C28 aliphatic group.
12. The lubricating oil composition of claim 11 wherein R1, R2 and R4 are hydrogen and R3 is a moiety of formula \u2014CH2NHR5 wherein R5 is a C10 to C28 aliphatic group.
13. The lubricating oil composition of claim 11 wherein R5 is a C10 to C18 aliphatic group.
14. A lubricating oil additive concentrate comprising from 90 to 10 weight percent of a liquid organic diluent and from about 10 to 90 weight percent of one or more compounds having the formula
wherein R1, R2, R3 and R4 are independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, a C1 to C4 alkyl group and a moiety of formula \u2014CH2NHR5 provided that at least one R1, R2, R3 and R4 is a moiety of formula \u2014CH2NHR5 wherein R5 is a C8 to C28 aliphatic group.
15. The lubricating oil additive concentrate of claim 14 wherein R1, R2 and R4 are hydrogen and R3 is a moiety of formula \u2014CH2NHR5 wherein R5 is a C10 to C28 aliphatic group.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A surfactant mixture comprising at least three ionic surfactants which differ in terms of the hydrocarbyl moiety (R1)(R2)\u2014CH\u2014CH2\u2014 and are of the general formula (I)
where
R1 is a linear or branched, saturated or unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbyl radical having 10 to 12 carbon atoms;
R2 is a linear or branched, saturated or unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbyl radical having 12 to 14 carbon atoms;
each A0 is independently ethylene, propylene or butylene;
k is an integer from 1 to 99,
X is a branched or unbranched hydrocarbylene group which has 1 to 10 carbon atoms and may be substituted by an OH group;
o is 0 or 1;
Mb+ is a cation;
Ya\u2212 is a sulfate group, sulfonate group, carboxylate group or phosphate group;
b is 1, 2 or 3 and
a is 1 or 2.
2. The surfactant mixture according to claim 1, wherein
R1 is a linear or branched, saturated or unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbyl radical having 10 or 12 carbon atoms; and
R2 is a linear or branched, saturated or unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbyl radical having 12 or 14 carbon atoms.
3. The surfactant mixture according to claim 1, wherein
R1 is a linear saturated or unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbyl radical having 10 or 12 carbon atoms,
R2 is a linear saturated or unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbyl radical having 12 or 14 carbon atoms, where the R1 and R2 radicals are selected such that the at least 3 ionic surfactants of the general formula (I) give rise to hydrocarbyl radicals (R1)(R2)CHCH2\u2014 with 24 carbon atoms, 26 carbon atoms and 28 carbon atoms.
4. The surfactant mixture according to claim 1, wherein k is an integer in the range from 4 to 50.
5. The surfactant mixture according to claim 1, wherein the (OX)oY1\u2212 radical in formula (I) is OS(O)2O, OCH2CH2S(O)2O\u2212, OCH2CH(OH)CH2S(O)2O\u2212, O(CH2)3S(O)2O\u2212, S(O)2O\u2212, CH2C(O)O\u2212 or CH2CH(R\u2032)C(O)O\u2212, where R\u2032 is hydrogen or an alkyl radical having 1 to 4 carbon atoms.
6. The surfactant mixture according to claim 1, wherein (OA)k in formula (I) represents n butyleneoxy, m propyleneoxy and I ethyleneoxy groups, where n+m+l=k.
7. The surfactant mixture according to claim 6, wherein the n butyleneoxy, m propyleneoxy and I ethyleneoxy groups are arranged in blocks.
8. The surfactant mixture according to claim 7, wherein the (R1)(R2)\u2014CH\u2014CH2\u2014 radical in formula (I) is followed, representing (OA)k, by a butyleneoxy block with n butyleneoxy groups, followed by a propyleneoxy block with m propyleneoxy groups, and finally an ethyleneoxy block with I ethyleneoxy groups.
9. The surfactant mixture according to claim 6, wherein m is an integer from 4 to 15 andor l is an integer of 0 to 25 andor n is an integer from 2 to 15.
10. The surfactant mixture according to claim 1, which further comprises surfactants of the formula
and of the formula
where R1, R2, A0, X, Ya\u2212, Mb+, k, o, a and b are each as defined for formula (I).
11. The surfactant mixture according to claim 10, wherein the proportion of surfactants of the formula (I) in relation to the sum of the amounts of surfactants of the formulae (I), (II) and (III) is in the range from 80% by weight to 99% by weight.
12. An aqueous surfactant formulation comprising a surfactant mixture according to claim 1, said surfactant formulation preferably having a total surfactant content of 0.05 to 5% by weight based on the total amount of the aqueous surfactant 1.0 formulation.
13. A process for producing mineral oil by means of Winsor type Ill microemulsion flooding, in which an aqueous surfactant formulation according to claim 12 is injected into a mineral oil deposit through at least one injection well for the purpose of lowering the interfacial tension between oil and water to <0.1 mNm, and crude oil is withdrawn from the deposit through at least one production well.
14. A process for preparing a surfactant mixture according to claim 1, comprising the steps of:
(a) preparing Guerbet alcohols of the general formula (IV) (R1)(R2)\u2014CH\u2014CH2OH (IV), where R1 and R2 are each as defined in claims 1 to 11, by condensing a mixture of at least two primary alcohols of the formula R\u2014CH2\u2014CH2\u2014OH, where R is a linear or branched, saturated or unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbyl radical having 10 to 12 carbon atoms,
(b) alkoxylating the alcohols obtained in process step (a),
(c) reacting the alcohol alkoxylates obtained in step (b) with a Ya\u2212 group, optionally to form a spacer group OX.
15. A method of using a surfactant mixture according to claim 1 in mineral oil production by means of Winsor type III microemulsion flooding.

1. An electrical device for charging accumulator means, said electrical device comprising:
a motor connected to an external mains;
an inverter connected to phases of said motor; and
switching means integrated into the inverter, said switching means being configured to permit said motor to be supplied and to permit the accumulator means to be charged by the inverter; and
for each phase of said motor, an RLC low-pass filter comprising three terminals respectively connected to the mid-point of a phase of said motor, to ground, and to a phase of the external mains.
2. The electrical device according to claim 1, wherein the RLC low-pass filter comprises:
an inductor connected to the mid-point of said phase of said motor via a first end, and connected to a second coil moiety of said motor via a second end;
a capacitor, a first end of which is connected to the second end of the inductor; and
a resistor, a first end of which is connected to a second end of the capacitor and a second end of which is connected to ground.
3. The electrical device according to claim 1, wherein the switching means comprise an H-bridge structure for each phase of the motor, such that each H-bridge structure has two switching arms respectively comprising two switches, an associated phase of said motor being connected between the four switches of the two switching arms.
4. The electrical device according to claim 1, wherein the switching means respectively comprise at least one transistor and at least one diode in parallel.
5. The electrical device according to claim 1, further comprising a DCDC converter between the switching means and the accumulator means.
6. The electrical device according to claim 1, wherein said motor is a three-phase motor.
7. The electrical device according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a control circuit configured to control the switching means to pass from a mode for supplying said motor to a mode for charging the accumulator means, and vice versa.
8. The electrical device according to claim 7, wherein the control circuit is configured to transmit a PWM (pulse width modulation) control signal.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A method for contacting liquid with an ion exchange resin comprising introducing liquid into a process tank containing ion exchange resin at an inlet and removing liquid that has been contacted with resin from the process tank at an outlet, the outlet being located above the inlet, the process tank including a resin containment region disposed between the inlet and the outlet to impede the upward flow of resin as it becomes entrained in the liquid flowing from the inlet to the outlet, and a contactor region for promoting contact between the resin and the liquid located below the containment region, said containment region containing an array of settling members through which the liquid and resin upflow and which impede the flow of the resin to a sufficient extent that it is substantially contained within or below the containment region, wherein the process tank is in fluid communication with a resin regeneration system whereby resin can be removed from the process tank and at least a portion of the resin subjected to a regeneration process before the regenerated resin is returned to the contactor region of the process tank.
2. The method according to claim 1 wherein the resin has a density greater than the liquid.
3. The method according to claim 2 wherein the resin has a density at least 10% greater than the liquid.
4. The method according to claim 2 wherein the resin has a density at least 15% greater than the liquid.
5. The method according to claim 1 wherein the resin is magnetic ion exchange resin.
6. The method according to claim 5 wherein the resin is a macroporous ion-exchange resin having magnetic particles dispersed throughout the resin.
7. The method according to claim 5 wherein the settling members are arranged to promote agglomeration of the magnetic ion exchange resin.
8. The method according to claim 1 wherein the settling members are lamella plates, inclined plates, settling tubes or both.
9. The method according to claim 1 wherein the process tank includes one or more additional arrays of settling members within the containment region upstream from the array of settling members and which assist in containing the resin within or below the containment region.
10. The method according to claim 1 which includes an additional step of capturing residual resin carried through the outlet by an outflowing stream of resin contacted liquid.
11. The method according to claim 10 wherein the stream of the resin contacted liquid from the outlet is passed through a magnetic field provided by permanent magnets located within the stream.
12. The method according to claim 11 which includes a further step of releasing any resin retained by the magnetic field of the permanent magnets and capturing the released resin.
13. The method according to claim 12 wherein the residual magnetic resin is separated from the liquid stream of resin contacted liquid by locating a contact surface within the stream, locating permanent magnets behind the contact surface which provide a magnetic field that extends through the contact surface and into the stream and which is capable of attracting and retaining magnetic resin onto the contact surface and where the magnetic field can be reduced or removed in response to an actuation means so as to release resin retained on the contact surface.
14. The method according to claim 13 wherein the magnetic field is reduced or removed by moving the magnet away from the stream contact surface.
15. The method according to claim 1 wherein the liquid is water.