Processes for breaking petroleum emulsions

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR BREAKING PETROLEUM EMULSIONS OF THE WATER-IN-OIL TYPE, CHARACTERIZED BY SUBJECTING THE EMULSION TO THE ACTION OF A DEMULSIFIER INCLUDING HIGH MOLAL OXYPROPYLATION DERIVATIVES OF MONOMERIC POLYAMINO COMPOUNDS, WITH THE PROVISO THAT (A) THE INITIAL POLYAMINO REACTANT BE FREE FROM ANY RADICAL HAVING AT LEAST 8 UNINTERRUPTED CARBON ATOMS; (B) THE INITIAL POLYAMINO REACTANT HAVE A MOLECULAR WEIGHT OF NOT OVER 10,000 AND AT LEAST A PLURALITY OF REACTIVE HYDROGEN ATOMS; (C) THE INITIAL POLYAMINO REACTANT MUST BE WATER-SOLUBLE; (D) THE OXYPROPYLATION AND PRODUCT MUST BE WATER-INSOLUBLE; (E) THE OXYPROPYLATION END PRODUCT BE WITHIN THE MOLECULAR WEIGHT RANGE OF 5,000 TO 100,000 ON AN AVERAGE STATISTICAL BASIS; (F) THE SOLUBILITY CHARACTERISTICS OF THE OXYPROPYLATION END PRODUCT IN RESPECT TO WATER MUST BE SUBSTANTIALLY THE RESULT OF THE OXYPROPYLATION STEP; (G) THE RATIO OF PROPYLENE OXIDE PER INITIAL REACTIVE HYDROGEN ATOM MUST BE WITHIN THE RANGE OF 5 TO 125; (H) THE INITIAL POLYAMINO REACTANT MUST REPRESENT NOT MORE THAN 20%, BY WEIGHT, OF THE OXYPROPYLATION END PRODUCT ON A STATISTICAL BASIS; (I) THE PRECEDING PROVISOS ARE BASED ON THE ASSUMPTION OF COMPLETE REACTION INVOLVING THE PROPYLENE OXIDE AND INITIAL POLYAMINO REACTANT; (J) THE POLYAMINO REACTANT MUST CONTAIN AT LEAST ONE BASIC NITROGEN ATOM; AND (K) AT LEAST ONE CARBON ATOM CHAIN LINKING TWO NITROGEN ATOMS IS INTERRUPTED AT LEAST ONCE BY AN OXYGEN ATOM.