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CPC technology class · C10

C10L - Fuels

Fuels not otherwise provided for; natural gas; synthetic natural gas obtained by processes not covered by subclasses c10g or c10k; liquified petroleum gas; use of additives to fuels or fires; fire-lighters. 5,025 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year filing trajectory.

5,025
US patents granted
C10
Parent CPC class
20
Active assignees
-16%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

Fuels ranks #251 of 670 CPC technology areas - 5,025 US patents granted since 2015, with filing down 16% over five years.

#251
of 670 CPC technology areas
5,025
US patents granted, 2015–2025
Saudi Arabian Oil
leading assignee (170)
-16%
filing velocity, last 5 yrs
Top assignee: Saudi Arabian OIL Company (170 patents)

CPC subclass C10L - FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G OR C10K; LIQUIFIED PETROLEUM GAS; USE OF ADDITIVES TO FUELS OR FIRES; FIRE-LIGHTERS - covers 5,025 US utility patents granted between 2015 and 2025 according to USPTO PatentsView records, within the broader CPC class C10 (PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT). See our CPC classification guide for how the system works.

The competitive landscape in C10L is shaped by 20 distinct companies actively filing in this space. Saudi Arabian OIL Company leads with 170 patents, followed by Exxonmobil Research AND Engineering Company at 111 grants and Shell OIL Compny at 99.

Filing activity in C10L is down 16% over the past five years versus 2015-2019, a relatively steady filing pace. All counts come directly from USPTO PatentsView and reflect US granted utility patents only.

Is C10L innovation accelerating?

US utility-patent grants per year in C10L, 2015–2025 - recent five years are down 16% versus 2015–2019.

200300400500600 20152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 236

Who leads C10L?

The 12 most active assignees in FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G OR C10K; LIQUIFIED PETROLEUM GAS; USE OF ADDITIVES TO FUELS OR FIRES; FIRE-LIGHTERS - wider bars mean more grants

patents

What this shows Saudi Arabian Oil is the most active filer in C10L, holding 170 of the 5,025 patents in this class. Concentration at the top signals how contestable this technology area is for new entrants.

Source USPTO PatentsView, granted utility patents As of 2015–2025 grant years
View data table
Top patent holders in CPC subclass C10L
Rank Company Patents in C10L
#1 Saudi Arabian OIL Company 170
#2 Exxonmobil Research AND Engineering Company 111
#3 Shell OIL Compny 99
#4 UOP Llc 77
#5 Neste OYJ 74
#6 Xyleco, Inc. 71
#7 Exxonmobil Upstream Research Company 59
#8 Chevron U.s.a. Inc. 58
#9 Afton Chemical Corporation 50
#10 Iogen Corporation 42
#11 Exxon Mobil Technology And Engineering Company 41
#12 IFP Energies Nouvelles 37
#13 The Lubrizol Corporation 37
#14 Innospec Limited 34
#15 L'air Liquide, Societe Anonyme Pour L'etude Et L'exploitation Des Procedes Georges Claude 33
#16 Phillips 66 Company 32
#17 Mawetal Llc 31
#18 Marathon Petroleum Company Lp 27
#19 Carbon Technology Holdings, Llc 27
#20 Elevance Renewable Sciences, Inc. 23

About This Class

CPC subclass C10L belongs to class C10.

5,025 patents were granted in this class between 2015 and 2025.

20 companies actively patent in this space.

Classification System

Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) is a hierarchical patent classification system used by the USPTO and EPO.

← All Technology Classes Technology Rankings →

Footprint here vs. claim strategy

Each dot is a leading C10L assignee, placed by how many patents it holds in this class (horizontal) against its company-wide average claims per patent (vertical) - a read on whether the class is led by broad-but-shallow filers or focused deep-claim players.

Top 14 C10L assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in C10L. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Top 14 C10L assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in C10L. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes). Scatter plot of 14 data points (bubble-sized by third dimension). 121416182022 050100150200 Patents in C10L Avg claims / patent (company-wide) Saudi Arabian OilExxonmobil Research A…Shell Oil CompnyUopNeste OyjXylecoExxonmobil Upstream R…Chevron UAfton ChemicalIogenExxon Mobil Technolog…Ifp Energies NouvellesThe LubrizolInnospec
Top 14 C10L assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in C10L. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CPC class C10L?
CPC subclass C10L covers FUELS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NATURAL GAS; SYNTHETIC NATURAL GAS OBTAINED BY PROCESSES NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C10G OR C10K; LIQUIFIED PETROLEUM GAS; USE OF ADDITIVES TO FUELS OR FIRES; FIRE-LIGHTERS. It belongs to CPC class C10 (PETROLEUM, GAS OR COKE INDUSTRIES; TECHNICAL GASES CONTAINING CARBON MONOXIDE; FUELS; LUBRICANTS; PEAT), with 5,025 US utility patents granted since 2015.
How many patents have been filed in C10L?
5,025 US utility patents were granted in CPC subclass C10L between 2015 and 2025, based on USPTO PatentsView data.
Which company holds the most patents in C10L?
Saudi Arabian OIL Company leads C10L with 170 patents, making it the most active assignee in this technology area.
How is patent data for C10L collected?
Patent data comes from USPTO PatentsView, a public research dataset maintained by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. It covers all US granted utility patents and assigns CPC codes based on the technology described in each patent.
What is the difference between CPC class and subclass?
A CPC class (e.g., C10) is a broad technology category. Subclasses like C10L provide finer granularity within that category. PlainPatent organizes data at the subclass level (4-character codes) for the most useful view of technology domains.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Data sourced from USPTO PatentsView - official U.S. government patent data. See our methodology for computation details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainPatent Editorial

Every figure on PlainPatent is rendered directly from USPTO source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on USPTO source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.