TYPES OF SOLID FUELS PRODUCED FROM COALS

AND THEIRE CHARACTERISTICS

INTRODUCTION
Fuel is a substance which, when burnt, i.e. on coming in contact and
reacting with
oxygen or air, produces heat. Thus, the substances classified as fuel must
necessarily
contain one or several of the combustible elements : carbon, hydrogen,
sulphur, etc. In
the process of combustion, the chemical energy of fuel is converted into
heat energy.
To utilize the energy of fuel in most usable form, it is required to transform
the fuel from
its one state to another, i.e. from solid to liquid or gaseous state, liquid to
gaseous state,
or from its chemical energy to some other form of energy via single or
many stages. In
this way, the energy of fuels can be utilized more effectively and
efficiently for various
purposes.

Objectives
After studying this unit, you should be able to

describe the classification of fuels,

explain the various types of fuels and their characteristics, and

know their applications in various field

PRINCIPLES OF CLASSIFICATION OF FUELS

Fuels may broadly be classified in two ways, i.e.
(a)according to the physical state in which they exist in nature - solid,
liquid and gaseous, and
(b)according to the mode of their procurement - natural and manufactured.
None of these classifications, however, gives an idea of the qualitative or
intensive value

of the fuels, i.e. their power of developing the thermal intensity or

calorimetric temperature under the normal condition of use, i.e. combustion
of fuels in mixture with atmospheric air in stoichiometric proportion.
We shall now proceed with the further description of the fuels. A brief
description of natural and manufactured fuels is given in Table -1.

SOLID FUELS AND THEIR CHARACTERISTICS

Solid fuels are mainly classified into two categories, i.e. natural fuels, such
as wood,
coal, etc. and manufactured fuels, such as charcoal, coke, briquettes, etc.
(Table-1).
The various advantages and disadvantages of solid fuels are given below

Advantages
(a)

They are easy to transport.

(b)
They are convenient to store without any risk of spontaneous
explosion.
(c)

Their cost of production is low.

(d)

They possess moderate ignition temperature.

Disadvantages
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)

Their ash content is high.

Their large proportion of heat is wasted.
They burn with clinker formation.
Their combustion operation cannot be controlled easily.
Their cost of handling is high.

Coals, types and their Characteristics

Coal:
meaning "mineral of fossilized carbon" since the thirteenth century) is a
combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in
rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams.

Types of coals:

Analysis of Coal

To ascertain the commercial value of coal certain tests regarding its

burning properties are performed before it is commercially marketed.
Two commonly used tests are: Proximate analysis and Ultimate
analysis of coal. Calorific value of coal is defined as the quantity of
heat given out by burning one-unit weight of coal in a calorimeter.
Proximate Analysis of Coal
This analysis of coal gives good indication about heating and burning
properties of coal. The test gives the composition of coal in respect of
moisture, volatile matter, ash and fixed carbon. The moisture test is
performed by heating 1 gm of coal sample at 104oC to 110oC for 1 hour in
an oven and finding the loss in weight. The volatile matter is determined
by
heating 1 gm of coal sample in a covered crucible at 950oC for 7 minutes
and determining loss in weight, from which the moisture content as found
from moisture test is deducted. Ash content is found by completely
burning the sample of coal in a muffled furnace at 700oC to 750oC and
weighing the residue. The percentage of fixed carbon is determined by
difference when moisture, volatile matter and ash have been accounted
for. The results of proximate analysis of most coals indicate the following
broad ranges of various constituents by weight:

The importance of volatile matter in coal is due to the fact that it largely
governs the combustion which in turn governs the design of grate and
combustions space used. High volatile matter is desirable in gas making,
while low volatile matter for manufacturing of metallurgical coke.

Manufactured Solid Fuels and their

Characteristics
The manufactured solid fuels include, charcoal, coke,
briquettes, etc. They are obtained from the natural
fuels, like wood, coal, etc.

1-Charcoal and its Characteristics

Out of the mentioned various manufactured fuels, the charcoal
occupies the first place in India. In some parts of the country, for
example, Mysore, huge quantities of charcoal are being used till
today in blast furnaces for reducing iron ores, etc. and in many
homes charcoal is used for cooking purposes. Charcoal is a produce
derived from destructive distillation of wood, being left in the shape
of solid residue. Charcoal burns rapidly with a clear flame, producing
no smoke and developing heat of about 6,050 cal/kg.

2-Coke and its Characteristics

It is obtained from destructive distillation of coal, being left in
the shape of solid residue. Coke can be classified into two
categories : soft coke and hard coke. Soft coke is obtained as
the solid residue from the destructive distillation of coal in the
temperature range of 600-650oC. It contains 5 to 10% volatile
matter. It burns without smoke. It is extensively used as
domestic fuel. Hard coke is obtained as solid residue from the
destructive distillation of coal in the temperature range of
1200-1400oC. It burns with smoke and is a useful fuel for
metallurgical process.
3-Briquettes and their Characteristics
binder. Dust and rubble result in considerable percentage
during mining, The term briquettes is used in respect of the
dust, culm, slack and other small size waste remains of lignite,
peat, coke, etc. compressed into different shapes of regular
form, with or without transportation, etc. and the briquetting
industry is, therefore, an important step towards the saving of
fuel economy. Good briquettes should be quite hard and as little
friable as possible. They must withstand the hazards of weather,
and must be suitable for storing and general handling in use.
These properties are imparting to briquettes by a correctly
selected binder, or suitable processing such as pre-heating,
pressing, etc. Amongst the binders, asphalt, pitch are most
commonly used, giving fine results. The general conclusion is

that 5-8% binder should be used to produce high quality

briquettes.
4-Bagasse and its Characteristics
Bagasse is the residue of sugarcane, left as waste in the sugar
mill after extraction of sugar juice. In weight, it is about 20% of
virgin cane. By nature, it is fibrous fuel which can be compared
to wood. It contains 35-45% fibre, 7-10% sucrose and other
combustible, and 45-55% moisture, and possesses an average
calorific value of 2200 cal/kg. On moisture-fibre basis the
average composition is :
C = 45%, H2 = 6%, O2 = 46% and Ash = 3%
Bagasse is the main fuel satisfying the needs of sugar
industries and efforts are being made for decreasing the percent
moisture of bagasse with the help of flue-gas waste heat dryers.
Bagasse is a quick burning fuel with good efficiency.

Process for producing fuels from caol in summery

1-Manufacture of Briquettes
Briquettes are formed by the application of pressure to small or
powdered coals. Two types of uncarbonized briquettes are
manufactured, namely:

a-binder less briquettes:

As yet it is only possible to prepare binderless briquettes on a
commercial basis with
sub-bituminous coals, lignites, or peat. Bituminous coals,
carbonaceous coals, and

anthracites all require the use of a binder, such as pitch, for the
production of satisfactory briquettes. The briquetting of brown coals
without binder has been developed extensively in Germany and in
Victoria, Australia. In these places large-scale plants have been in
operation for some years to upgrade the brown coal deposits.
b- Carbonized Briquettes (Lurgi Process)
It has been found in Germany that many types of lignite, although
not forming cokes
on carbonization at ordinary rates in coke-ovens or gas retorts, will
form strong, coherent, residues if carbonized rapidly. Lignites that do
not form a coherent residue on carbonization can usually be made to
form a serviceable coke if carbonized after
briquetting.

2-In the preferred direct heating process,

combustion gases are brought into direct contact with the fuel. The
method permits a high rate of heat transfer to the fuel and imposes
no limits on the size of the carbonizing chamber. In consequence,
units with a very high throughput can be built. The high rate of heat
transfer and the small heat loss also result in high thermal efficiency.

3- Bituminous Coals and Anthracites

Bituminous coals, carbonaceous coals and anthracites cannot
normally be made into binderless briquettes, but briquetting with a
binder is a very useful method of utilizing small-waste, high-rank
coals in a convenient solid form. The following are the principal
types of binders that have been used in practice:
1. Inorganic binders: sodium silicate, sulphite lye, lime-silica,
magnesium oxychloride and cement.
2. Cereal binders: starches, or ground cereals, such as maize flour.
3. Heavy hydrocarbons or asphalts: coal tar pitch or bitumen.
Inorganic binders have the obvious disadvantage of increasing the
ash content of the
briquettes, but the simplicity of the briquetting process may
sometimes offset this disadvantage.

4- Processes of Manufacture

Small coal with moisture controlled to 2% is delivered to the feed

hopper of a mixer,
or measurer. The pitch is broken down below 10 mm size in a pitch
cracker and delivered into the pitch feed hopper of the coal and
pitch mixer. In this apparatus the
proportions of coal and pitch are regulated and .the materials are
subjected to a preliminary mixing. The mixed coal and pitch are then
delivered into a disintegrator,
via a magnetic separator. The materials are ground together,
thoroughly mixed, and delivered into the vertical heater or pug of
the briquette machine, where superheated steam softens the finely
ground pitch and brings the blended materials to the correct degree
of temperature and plasticity for the production of satisfactory
briquettes. With
the rectangular press, the hot semi-plastic material is fed under
pressure into the mould table, where it is pressed at 15 N m~2.
Various sizes of rectangular briquettes are made, the smallest
briquette weighing 1 kg and the largest 10 kg.

5- The Homefire Process

"Homefire"

is a hexagonal briquetted fuel produced by the National

Coal Board for
use in open domestic fires as a smokeless fuel. Small bituminous
coal is crushed to 1.5 mm and dried to a water content of
approximately 3%. After further screening, to remove fines, the coal
particles are placed in a fluidized reactor at about 410C. The
fluidizing gas is a mixture of air and steam, which allows partial
combustion of the coalparticularly the volatiles which give rise to
smokeleaving a material known as "char". The temperature of the
bed is controlled by varying the amount of air in the fluidizing gas.
The hot char leaving the back of the fluidized bed is pressed through
a die to give the
characteristic shape. The briquettes have to be cooled slowly down
to about 110C and then are water quenched. Off gases from the
reactor are freed from fine char in cyclones and are then burnt to
produce the process steam. Char fines can be returned to the
fluidized bed for subsequent briquetting.

Coal Pyrolysis
Pyrolysis of coal dates back to the eighteenth century, using
temperatures below 700 C (1290 F) in fixed- or moving fixed-bed
reactors. The primary product was a low-volatile smokeless domestic
solid fuel, although the value of the liquid products was also soon
recognized. During the 1920s and 1930s there was a great deal of
R&D in low-temperature processes, but interest dwindled in the mid1940s when gas and oil became readily available at low prices. With
the oil embargo and increased oil prices of the early 1970s, interest
renewed in coal pyrolysis, but in more recent times interest has
again declined along withmpetroleum prices (Khan and Kurata,
1985).
Pyrolysis kinetics are reasonably well understood and have been
modelled extensively (Solomon et al., 1993). Both yield and liquid
fuel properties depend on pyrolysis conditions. Pyrolysis under mild
temperatures (500 C to 700 C [930 F to 1290 F]) and pressures
(up to 50 psig) with rapid heat-up can produce high liquid yields
without adding hydrogen. However, a significant part of the feed
coal remains as char with market value comparable to or somewhat
less than that of the feed coal. Coal pyrolysis offers some promise of
lower liquid costs if the char can be upgraded to higher-value
specialty products, such as form coke, smokeless fuel, activated
carbon, or electrode carbon, or if the liquid yield can be significantly
increased by using low-cost reactants (steam and carbon dioxide) or
catalysts. Pyrolysis liquids have a low hydrogen-to-carbon ratio,
generally less than one, in contrast to petroleum tars and bitumen
(around 1.4) and high-quality petroleum products (approximately
2.0). They also contain substantial amounts of oxygen, compared to
tars, and thus require more extensive hydrogen addition to produce
specification fuels. Their tendency to polymerize on standing can
cause operational problems, which also must be addressed. Little
heat is required to produce pyrolysis liquids from coal, however, and
production as a side stream to coal gasification or fluidized-bed
combustion is efficient.

Pyrolysis reactors generally operate at modest pressures and

temperatures compared to other coal conversion systems and offer
high throughput. Both of these features lead to low capital cost. The
cost of pyrolysis liquids could thus be low and might be competitive
with bitumen or for integration with oil refinery hydro conversion
operations where their solubility characteristics could improve the
operability of hydrocarbon units.
They could also be combined with direct coal liquefaction. When
made from low-sulphur coal, pyrolysis liquids have limited potential
as a substitute without refining for petroleum fuel oil, and an
ongoing CCT program (ENCOAL Mild Coal Gasification project) is
aimed at this market.
Pyrolysis liquids have traditionally been a source of coal tar
chemicals, and the DOE Mild Gasification program is aimed, in part,
at this market (see below).The budget for the DOE Advanced Clean
Fuels Program within the FE coal R&D activity underwent a 30
percent reduction between FY 1993 and FY 1994,and a further 45
percent reduction is proposed for FY 1995 These budget decisions
reflect a diminished commitment to the use of coal for production of
clean liquid fuels by either indirect or direct liquefaction. Of
particular note is the proposed reduction of 84 percent in FY 1995
funding for Advanced Research and Environmental Technology;
programs in this area are expected to lead to improvements in
efficiency and cost reductions for liquid fuel production.