Coal preparation and environmental needs for synfuels

The eighties are likely to witness the first commercial-size coal-to-gasoline plant(s) in the U.S., although uncertainty regarding crude prices and cautious involvement of the Federal Government in the synfuels development are evident. The formation of The U.S. Synthetic Fuels Corporation with passage of the Energy Security Act is projected to pave the way for some of the projects on a moderate scale. The corporate objectives are to provide funds for supporting a number of feasibility studies and loan guarantees for the construction of at least some commercial-size plants and the possibility of product price supports or purchase commitments. There are a number of coal conversion processes currently under evaluation for producing either gaseous or liquid plus gaseous fuels, the other processes such as SRC I are for producing desulfurized deashed clean solid fuel for commercial use. Most of the coal gasification and liquefaction processes have rigid specifications for the coal feed. Coal handling and feed preparation represent a significant portion of the capital outlay. Use of fines, surplus from a gasification process, can have a great impact on the process efficiency and overall economics. Method of ash removal from the gasifiers and its disposal also have major environmentral impacts. Whilemore » extensive research and testwork have been done on the coal gasification/liquefaction unit operations, due attention has not been given to the coal handling, cleaning, gasifier feed preparation, and ash disposal-related issues. The purpose of this paper is to spell out preparation and environmental considerations for coal-derived synfuels plants. This paper is based on a number of studies recently carried out by the Fluor Corporation and the authors' past experience in coal preparation and general review of the subject.« less