Coal pyrolysis and coal briquetting for production of smokeless fuel

Abstract

To investigate the possibility of direct production of smokeless fuel, a moderate temperature coking was applied. Coals used for this purposes are named as No:800 in International Classification and cause considerable amounts of smoke emissions due to their high tar contents, when burned. Following a preheating treatment at 120° C, the smokeless fuels (semicokes) were produced by coking of the samples 16–32 mm at 450° C, with a heating rate of 150° C/h. These semicokes have been found to be strong, their tar contents are far below 2%, and volatile matters are mainly composed of CH₄ and H₂. The formation of semicoke particles smaller than 10 mm at the level of 25 to 30%, could not be avoided. Briquettes prepared by using these particles and tar or molasses as binder, were also found suitable for heating purposes.

Key words:

• Smokeless fuel
• semicoke
• moderate temperature coking
• briquetting.