Process for producing alkaline earth metal sulfonates

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF COMMERCIALLY PURE ALKALINE EARTH METAL SULFONATES IN MIXTURE WITH HYDROCARBON OIL WHICH COMPRISES REACTING A MAHOGANY SULFONIC ACID CONTAINING IN EXCESS OF 20% OF SULFONIC ACID IN RELATION TO THE TOTAL SULFONIC ACID AND HYDROCARBON OIL AND CONTAINING THE FREE SULFURIC ACID AND HYDROICARBON OIL AND MAHOGANY SULFNOIC ACID BEING PRODUCED BY THE SULFONATION OF ALKYL AROMATICS OF THE TYPE CONTAINED IN PETROLEUM DISTILLATES, WITH AN AMOUNT OF ALKALINE EARTH BASE SUFFICIENT TO AT LEAST NEUTRALIZE SAID SULFONIC ACID IN THE PRESENCE OF AN AMOUNT OF ALCOHOL OF NOT MORE THAN 3 TIMES THE VOLUME OF THE MAHOGANY SULFNOIC ACID BUT SUFFICIENT TO DISSOLVE THE ALKALINE EARTH METAL SULFONATES PRODUCED, SAID ALCOHOL HAVING NOT MORE THAN 5 CARBON ATOMS IN ITS MOLECULE AND A CONCENTRATION OF AT LEAST 70% THE BALANCE BEING WATER, THEREBY PRODUCING ALKALINE EARTH METAL SULFNONATES IN ALCOHOL SOLUTION AND SETTLING SAID ALKALINE EARTH METAL SULFONATES IN SAID ALCOHOL SOLUTION IN THE PRESENCE OF HYDROCARBON OIL HAVING A VISCOSITY S.U.S OF 30 TO 1000 SECONDS AT 100 DEGREE F. AND A SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF FROM 0.77 TO 0.95 TO THE EXTENT OF 60-80% BY WEIGHT BASED ON THE COMBINED OIL AND SULFONIC ACID THEREBY PRODUCING AN ALCOHOL PHASE CONTAINING IN SOLUTION THE ALKALINE EARTH METAL SULFONATE AND SOME OF THE HYDROCARBON OIL, AND AS A SEPARATE PHASE, OIL AND OILAGGLOMERATED IMPURITIES AND RECOVERING A MIXTURE OF OIL AND ALKALINE EARTH METAL SULFONATE FROM THE ALCOHOL PHASE.