A raw material pitch for carbon fiber production, with which carbon fiber excellent in tensile strength can be produced at relatively low costs, is provided. The raw material pitch is obtained from coal, is a pitch for producing carbon fiber by melt spinning, and contains oxygen in a content of 1.0% by mass or more and a toluene-soluble component in a content of 20% by mass or more. The coal is preferably bituminous coal or sub-bituminous coal. The raw material pitch is preferably prepared by subjecting a solvent-soluble component separated from a thermal decomposition product of coal in a solvent by a solvent extraction treatment at a temperature of less than 300 C. to a heat treatment at a temperature of 150 C. or more.

Provided are a method of preparing a high softening point pitch and the high softening point pitch prepared thereby, in which a polyene radical intermediate is formed, and an alkylaromatic radial material is linearly linked to the polyene radical intermediate in a benzyl or methylene form to be polymerized. The method includes performing heat treatment by adding a compound, which is able to a polyene radical intermediate, to 1- to 4-ring alkylaromatic condensates to produce a basic pitch, and performing vacuum heat treatment for the basic pitch.

The present invention relates to the use of bisamide compounds to improve the ageing resistance and/or increase the service life and/or delay the appearance of signs of ageing of a bituminous composition. The invention also relates to a method for improving the ageing resistance and/or increasing the service life and/or delaying the appearance of signs of ageing of a bituminous composition.

The present description relates to enhanced bitumen froth treatment where decanter cake is subjected to additional processing that includes the addition of diluent and bitumen, optionally in the form of bitumen froth, followed by gravity settling or centrifugation. The resulting bitumen enriched material can then be recycled back into the froth treatment operation.

A process for making a mesophase pitch may include passing an aromatics-rich feed into a reactor and subjecting the aromatics-rich feed to a temperature of greater than or equal to 350 C. and a pressure of from 20 bar to 40 bar for a duration of from 4 hours to 10 hours in the reactor to produce the mesophase pitch. The total amount of molecular oxygen and peroxides in the reactor may be less than 1 mol. %. The aromatics-rich feed may include at least 80 wt. % aromatics and the aromatics-rich feed may include less than 3 wt. % of a combination of sulfur, nitrogen, and oxygen.

A process for producing mesophase pitch includes charging a mixture of a carrier gas and a hydrocarbon feed including isotropic pitch to a reactor operating at thermal operating conditions sufficient to induce conversion of at least one chosen from the hydrocarbon feed and the isotropic pitch to mesophase pitch such that the mixture of the hydrocarbon feed and the carrier gas establishes a stratified flow regime having a vapor phase and a liquid phase in the reactor. The process also includes maintaining thermal operating conditions in the reactor while the mixture of the hydrocarbon feed and the carrier gas is flowing in the stratified flow regime in the reactor such that conversion of the at least one chosen from the hydrocarbon feed and the isotropic pitch to mesophase pitch is induced in the liquid phase. The process further includes discharging an effluent including mesophase pitch from the reactor.

Methods of processing a coal-based feedstock to a high value product are provided. In one embodiment a method of processing a coal-based feedstock to a high value product, the method comprises the steps of: contacting the coal-based feedstock with one or more solvents under non-pyrolytic conditions thereby generating a liquid phase; and fractionating the liquid phase to generate at least two fractions under conditions such that at least one of the fractions is the high value product. The liquid phase may comprise 5 to 25 wt % oxygen and at least 70% of the oxygen in the liquid phase may be in the form of phenolic, carboxylic and ketone functional groups of hydrocarbon-based compounds.

Methods of valorization of lignocellulosic feedstocks via bio-solvents to produce asphalt products are provided. In one embodiment, a method of valorizing a lignocellulosic feedstock includes: providing a lignocellulosic feedstock; contacting the lignocellulosic feedstock with a bio-solvent at a temperature selected from the range of 120 C. to 450 C., thereby generating a liquid phase and a residue, the residue being an insoluble solid; distilling the liquid phase, thereby generating a distillate and a product; and producing an asphalt binder material, wherein the asphalt binder material comprises the product.