C10B DESTRUCTIVE DISTILLATION OF CARBONACEOUS MATERIALS FOR PRODUCTION OF GAS, COKE, TAR, OR SIMILAR MATERIALS (cracking oils C10G; underground gasification of minerals E21B43/295)
Description
C10B covers the thermal decomposition of carbonaceous materials (coal, wood, oil shale, lignite, and similar substances) in the absence of air to produce coke, coal tar, coal gas, and other by-products. This class encompasses apparatus, processes, and control methods for dry distillation, including retort design, heating systems, gas recovery, and condensation of volatile products. It excludes petroleum refining and cracking processes (C10G) as well as the purification of gases already produced (C10L), focusing instead on the primary destructive distillation step itself.
Filing statistics
CPC subclass C10B recorded 22,990 patent applications worldwide between 2013 and 2023. Annual filings grew from 1,658 in 2013 to 2,271 in 2023 (+37%), peaking at 2,590 applications in 2020. The most active applicants in class C10 are SINOPEC (CHINA PETROCHEMICAL CORPORATION) (5,831 applications), SAUDI ARABIAN OIL COMPANY (2,918 applications) and IFPEN (IFP ENERGIES NOUVELLES) (2,305 applications).
Source: EPO PATSTAT, worldwide filings
29 direct subcodes
Child Classifications
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- C10B 1/00 Retorts
- C10B 11/00 Coke ovens with inclined chambers
- C10B 13/00 Coke ovens with means for bringing and keeping the charge under mechanical pressure
- C10B 15/00 Other coke ovens
- C10B 17/00 Preheating of coke ovens
- C10B 19/00 Heating of coke ovens by electrical means
- C10B 21/00 Heating of coke ovens with combustible gases
- C10B 23/00 Other methods of heating coke ovens
- C10B 25/00 Doors or closures for coke ovens
- C10B 27/00 Arrangements for withdrawal of the distillation gases
- C10B 29/00 Other details of coke ovens
- C10B 3/00 Coke ovens with vertical chambers
- C10B 31/00 Charging devices
- C10B 33/00 Discharging devices; Coke guides
- C10B 35/00 Combined charging and discharging devices
- C10B 37/00 Mechanical treatments of coal charges in the oven
- C10B 39/00 Cooling or quenching coke
- C10B 41/00 Safety devices, e.g. signalling or controlling devices for use in the discharge of coke
- C10B 43/00 Preventing or removing incrustations
- C10B 45/00 Other details
Top Applicants
Top 10 applicants by patent filingsfor class C10, 2013–2023, worldwide · Source: EPO PATSTAT
- SINOPEC (CHINA PETROCHEMICAL CORPORATION) 5,831
- SAUDI ARABIAN OIL COMPANY SA 2,918
- IFPEN (IFP ENERGIES NOUVELLES) FR 2,305
- EXXONMOBIL RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING COMPANY US 2,282
- UNIVERSAL OIL PRODUCTS COMPANY (UOP) US 2,268
- SHELL INTERNATIONALE RESEARCH MAATSCHAPPIJ NL 2,124
- BASF (BADISCHE ANILIN & SODA FABRIK) DE 1,487
- CHEVRON CORPORATION US 1,400
- PETROCHINA COMPANY 1,372
- LUBRIZOL CORPORATION US 1,324