Search Documents

By G. M. Bond

Reduction of the emissions of greenhouse gases, such as CO,, is currently the subject of extensive research. A novel strategy is put forward here, based on a biomimetic approach providing accelerated deposition into carbonate form for long-term sequestration. It offers the advantages of a process that: does not require concentration of CO, from flue gases; could potentially be used in an on-site scrubber to provide a plant-by-plant solution to reducing CO, emissions; is an environmentally benign procss with an environmentally benign product; and is based on readily available, low-cost reagents (except perhaps the catalyst).

Jan 1, 1999

By P. C. M. Knops, K. Rijnsburger, R. M. Santos

To overcome the challenges of mineral CO2 sequestration, this work utilizes a unique proprietary Gravity Pressure Vessel (GPV) reactor technology, and focuses on reaction products of high economic value. The GPV provides intense process conditions through hydrostatic pressurization and heat exchange integration that harvests exothermic reaction energy. Here, laboratory-scale tests of the envisioned process was performed in tubular and continuously stirred tank reactor (CSTR) autoclave reactors. The mineral used was Olivine (~Mg1.6Fe2+0.4(SiO4) + ppm Ni/Cr), although asbestos, steel slags and oil shale residues are also under investigation. The effect of several process parameters on reaction extent and product properties was tested: CO2 pressure, temperature, residence time, additives (buffers, lixiviants, chelators, oxidizers), solids loading, and mixing rate. The products (carbonates, amorphous silica and Chromite) were physically separated (based on size, density and magnetic properties), characterized (for chemistry, mineralogy and morphology) and tested in intended applications (e.g. as pozzolanic carbon-negative building material). Economically, it is found that product value is the main driver for mineral carbonation, rather than, or in addition to, the sequestered CO2. The approach of using a GPV and focusing on valuable reaction products could thus make CO2 mineralization a feasible and sustainable hydrometallurgical process.

Jan 1, 2015

By Shakuntala Tudu, Indrajit Paul, Surajit Sinha, Pulibandla Basaveswara Rao, Shaik Mahaboob Basha, Srinivas Dwarapudi

The iron and steel manufacturing sector directly accounts for 7–9% of global CO2 emissions. Raw material preparation, such as iron ore sintering, pelletizing, and cock making, is the major CO2 emitter. As climate change becomes a bigger concern, steel manufacturers need to lower CO2 emissions without hindering efficiency or increasing costs. In recent years, the percentage of iron ore pellets in blast furnaces has increased due to its uniform size, good reducibility, and high tumbler index. Pelletizing is energy-intensive and emits considerable CO2. Around 20% of CO2 emissions during pellet making come from fluxes. In the present work, the authors established a novel CO2- free flux called wollastonite (CaO.SiO2) for sustainable palletization. Pellets with varying percentages of wollastonite (0–6%) are prepared and tested for chemical, physical, and metallurgical properties. Image analysis through an optical microscope is carried out to quantify the phases of fired pellets. SEM–EDS is performed to evaluate the chemical composition of the melt and slag phases. The results showed that the reducibility index (RI) and swelling index (SI) of pellets decreased with an increase in wollastonite dosage. Pellet strength increases with an increase in wollastonite addition up to 1.2% CaO (2.27% wollastonite), and a decrease in strength is observed thereafter. The increase in strength is attributed to the increase in slag bonds. The decrease in strength beyond 1.2% CaO is mainly because of an increase in low melting eutectics and more magnetite content. Pellets with 2.27% wollastonite to get 1.2% CaO showed good physical and metallurgical properties.

Mar 4, 2024

With the dawning of a new century came the beginning of a new era in the coal industry. Instead of the traditional practice of only buying and selling produced coal in the United States, a coal futures market was established. The New York Mercantile Exchange began trading coal futures in July 2001. But, even in this new era, many of the old is-sues that have beset the coal industry still remain, as was evident in2001. Coal production increased to are cord level during 2001, according to preliminary data from the US Energy Information Administration(EIA). Production in 2001 rose by4% to 1.01 Gt (1.12 billion st), compared with 2000 (Table 1). This barely surpassed the previous record level of 1 Gt (1.11 billion st)set in 1998. Coal consumption remained unchanged. The additional production was used to replenish the depleted stockpiles that had resulted after two years of declining coal production and increasing coal consumption.

Jan 1, 2002

By Suresh P. Babu, Joseph W. Leonard, Richard Muter, D. P. Sen

OUTLOOK FOR COAL UTILIZATION In 1975, about 650 million tons of bituminous coal and lignite mined in the United States was used to meet 55% of the primary energy input for electric power generation and 26% of the total industrial consumption.1 Even though this amounts to only 21% of the total energy requirements, it is believed that with the declining natural gas resources and uncertainty of liquid fuel imports, coal will assume a more dominant role in suppplying our future energy needs. A regional breakdown of the coal reserves of the United States along with their characteristics is shown in Table I. At present the United Stares Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA) and the US Bureau of Mines (USBM) are financing extensive research programs in advanced mining methods and energy conversion processes. The increased demand for wal which may result from these research programs may also create large-scale environmental protection problems. As more and more coal is mined the production of undesirable coal fines and dust also increases proportionally. The USBM and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) research in this field includes development in the areas of instrumentation for qualitative and quantitative analysis of wal dust, protective devices, and dust collectors. Dust control by water sprays, steam, and foam are also being investigated. Other aspects of safety in mining include developing methane drainage techniques prior to coal mining, fire and explosion prevention, and neutralization and disposal of acid mine waters. It is the belief of coal technologists that when the emphasis shifts to coal as the primary source of energy. the existing methods of mining and preparation of coal must be improved considerably to supply large quantities of quality coal for energy conversion. It is the objective of the present large-scale research financed by ERDA to produce substitute fuels from coal. Large-scale gasification pilot plants are being constructed by Bituminous Coal Research, Consolidation Coal Co., Institute of Gas Technology, and the Pittsburgh Energy Research Center to produce coal gas of natural gas standards at 1,000 psig. The processes being adopted by these pilot plants are oriented towards recovering most of the sulfur from coal by absorbing H2S and its subsequent conversion to elemental sulfur. The environmental protection standards will be strictly followed in using the results of these pilot plants to construct large-scale coal gasification plants in the latter part of the 1970's. With the increasing awareness of the need for air pollution control, considerable research is being done to minimize sulfur dioxide emission from thermal power plants. Utilization of limestone and dolomite scrubbing systems and caustic treatment of stack gases have proved to reduce sulfur and nitric oxide emissions by about 90 to 96%.3 Currently, about 22 scrubbers are in use in the United States to reduce sulfur in stack gas emission. In the long-term, it appears that optimal combinations will be developed involving both advanced coal preparation technology and wet scrubbing. The sulfur compounds are converted either to elemental sulfur of sulfuric acid. Besides the sulfur compounds, the major byproduct of the coal utilization industry is the large amount of coal ash. The Coal Research Bureau at West Virginia University has developed a practical use for coal ash as a structural material. The coal industry will undergo revolutionary changes when coal becomes the primary source of energy. New coal mining and preparation processes will be introduced to meet the ever-increasing per capita energy requirements. 2. BENEFICATION Introduction Coal preparation, like the beneficiation of ores, is also aimed at the separation of values from associated waste. Even though the unit operations involved when enriching ores and coal are similar, there are certain characteristics unique to coal preparation. Unlike the scattered and concentrated veins of underground minera1 ores, coal is distributed uniformly and very much in abundance in the coal mines. Coal occurs as the metamorphosed sedimentary deposits of vegetable matter, while metal and mineral deposits occur in great varieties of forms, structures, and origin-from igneous to sedimentary and metamorphic. The mined coal, being much more friable than mineral ores, is subjected to less intensive size reduction operations. Ores are usually ground to a very fine size for subsequent concentration, while coal is crushed to a coarser size, since considerably less liberation is needed to achieve the desired degree of separation. Since mineral matter is to a great extent discretely distributed in coal, concentration is mainly achieved by taking advantage of differences in specific gravity between clean coal and associated waste. In general, about 90% of coal is concentrated using specific gravity separation and about 10% by froth flotation. In contrast, these operations are frequently reversed in the beneficiation of ores. In coal preparation almost all fractions separated during various stages are made use of. while large amounts of gangue material are rejected in the concentration of ores. Hence, coal generally has a much lower ratio of concentration than ores. Since ore deposits are frequently more variable and mineralogically complex than coal, beneficiation of ore may require more plant flexibility and point-to-point quality control. This characteristic difference between the mineral ores and coal is attributed to the generally used one-step processing in coal as compared to the multiple-step processing of ores. Dewatering to enhance the energy content of coal is usually considered a major unit operation. Even though thickening and filtration are common for dewatering ore concentrates and cleaned coal, vibrating centrifuges and disk filters find unique application in the coal industry for achieving these types of solid-fluid separation. In coal preparation, thermal drying is carried out in separate units at the mine. While ore concentrates are usually dried at the smelter. Although the drying of ores is seldom considered dangerous, volatile matter and combustible dust are reasons why the thermal drying of coal can be hazardous. Open air storage of ores and mined coal results in partial oxidation. Unlike the oxidation of ores, the oxidation of the pyritic and carbonaceous constituents of coal together with the heat of condensation of moisture contribute to spontaneous heating and the subsequent combustion of coal in storage. Among the other significant difference between concentration of ores and coal are the weight and capacity of processing equipment. Coal processing employs less cumbersome, higher capacity units while the beneficiation of ores usually requires much more massive and frequently lower capacity equipment. Properties of Coal Which Influence Design The widely varying and heterogeneous composition of coal, due to metamorphism, determines the preparation design and uses of the resulting products. Petrography serves as a useful system of classification to identify the coal types present and their distribution. Early

Jan 1, 1985

By C. F. Cockrell, H. E. Shafer, J. W. Leonard

A significant technological development is discussed for the processing of certain power plant flyashes that are a problem because they contain a high water-soluble mineral content and yield inferior flyash-based brick. This development is based on the addition of hydrochloric acid to the flyash-bottom ash-sodium silicate blends used for the production of flyash-based structures. Favorable changes are evi-dent in sodium silicate consumption, where about half the amount used for making brick from normal flyash is required, processing costs, and strength and appearance of the resulting freshly formed green and fired structural products. In some high cost in-stances (above the $30 or less per thousand brick estimated for normal flyash), hydrochloric acid additions can replace or reduce other costly additives normally required for problem flyashes. This results in savings of as much as $9 per thousand brick. These developments offer promising possibilities for utilizing problem flyashes as well as flyashes which may come into contact with water soluble sulfur as a result of the eventual application of certain experimental air pollution control processes. Much of the research datal-6 accrued through work by the Coal Research Bureau of West Virginia University for the Department of Interior's Office of Coal Research on converting waste power coal ash to valuable brick and other structural products, can be categorized as follows: (1) general ash-to-brick tech- nology; (2) specific ash-to-brick optimization; (3) pilot plant progress; (4) production cost estimates. A summary of the progress on bench-scale experiments indicates that coal ash can yield two types of brick. An acceptable brick is obtained by mixing 73.6% fly-ash, 23.5% bottom ash and 2.9% sodium silicate solution (dry basis). Depending on the flyash and bottom ash used, optimum brick can be manufactured by mixing 72-77% flyash, 20-25% bottom ash and 2.3-3.0% sodium silicate (dry basis) with Na2O : SiO2 ratio varied according to the composition of the flyash used. These blends are thoroughly mixed and mechanically formed into green brick shapes at pressures ranging from 1000 to the more usual 3000 lb per sq in. The green shapes then are dried and fired at temperatures ranging from 1975-2150°F using clay brick cycles that are shorter than standard. Other findings reported to date indicate that when making optimum brick, it is necessary to carefully control the top size of the moisture-releasing bottom ash so that it falls between 8 and 30 mesh, depending on the flyash used. Moreover, the chemical composition of bottom ash and flyash have been found to be of little significance with the exception of a few problem flyashes which are the subject of this paper. Finally, the pilot plant, which was previously reported under construction, is now in operation. This will indicate, among other things, the cost of brick production, which was earlier estimated for non-problem flyashes at $30 or less per thousand brick. The foregoing bench-scale technology is applicable to all the initially tested ashes as well as to the majority of ashes examined during the course of research. However, a few of the ashes yield green and fired products that may be structurally inferior or unacceptable, necessitating excessive and diverse reagent addition, and/or may be coated with unsightly surface deposits. These problem ashes generally originate in certain areas of Illinois, western Ken-

Jan 1, 1969

By Marshall Pease, R. J. Brandon

A UTILITY that has a large consumption of coal must insure an adequate and sound supply of fuel. The Detroit Edison Co., which has an annual coal consumption of about four million tons and spends approximately $32 million a year for coal, including freight charges, has developed a program for fuel procurement and for evaluation and selection of fuel for reliable and efficient plant operation. Fuel Procurement Coal Purchasing Division: The Fuel Supply Div. of the Purchasing Dept. combines all of the procurement functions in one group, which must maintain adequate stocks of fuel. In addition to its usual purchasing duties, the division also governs transportation, follow-up, invoice and freight bill, in cooperation with the Accounting Dept. The Fuel Div. is comprised of the fuel agent, an assistant fuel agent, a coal buyer and five coal clerks, who follow the movement of each car, initially approve freight bills and invoices, and file claims whenever there is a shortage of one ton or more. The fuel agent reports directly to the purchasing agent of the Company, and all major programs are planned jointly with the chief purchasing officer. The apparent individuality of the fuel section is necessary because of the tremendous volume of coal cars handled each day, sometimes as many as 500, which must be handled promptly to complete the fastest possible move from the mines to the plants. Determining Annual Coal Volume: Through the combined studies of a Production Dept. Load Committee and the Controller's office, accurate predictions of coal requirements for any given year are provided the Fuel Dept. from 12 to 15 months in advance. This is divided into the requirements of all individual power plants and central heating plants. This in turn determines the quantity and quality for plants whose specific fuels vary with the type of equipment installed. In the Detroit area, which has a high industrial load, early estimates of annual coal consumption usually are resolved at the end of the year within 4 or 5 pct of the original plan. Operating in a highly developed industrial area eases the task of estimating primary output; and, with the residential demands increasing in a steady and fairly well-defined pattern, the overall coal schedules are not subject to radical changes during any given year. Selecting Suppliers: At any time, but especially during or before an emergency, the coal supply factor must be made secure. This is particularly true in the procurement of utility fuel. There are always extreme quantities of so-called "bargain" coal available during the buyers' markets, such as recently prevailed. These opportunistic offerings may be considered a means of averaging down overall price, rather than as a steady and dependable supply source. Coal is purchased on contract from mine operators and sales agents who have proved reliable. They are not opportunists who desert for higher dollars in times of duress; they do not fail to fulfill contracts when markets rise or overship when markets dip. The progressive operator today who is willing to expend capital to improve quality and service deserves much more consideration than a matching of short-term pennies. When a company has a high volume of annual needs, all phases of the mine supply must be considered. The mine must be able to produce the quality required at a fair price and be able to sell oversizes of coal in enough volume to screen sufficient nut and slack. It must crush coal and sell mine run at prices in line with competitive nut and slack and be willing to do so when there is no demand for prepared sizes. Determining Price: The public utility is in direct competition with any of its customers who can, if savings are guaranteed, generate their own power. Today, to a greater extent than ever before, private industry must do a better overall job than Government-controlled operations. The price of coal must be realistically balanced with the price paid by almost all industries and the railroads as well. The supply-demand ratio in coal is not difficult to discern. There is access at all times to Govern-

Jan 1, 1952

By R. J. Wagner, G. H. Gronhovd, A. J. Wittmier

The paper describes the results of a series of full-scale boiler tests run to determine the ash fouling characteristics of a North Dakota lignite as a function of sodium content of the coal. Four levels of sodium were investigated and rate of fouling was determined both by boiler performance and by specially constructed probe equipment. Discussed is information on chemical and physical properties of the ash deposits. The vast lignite deposits in North Dakota are becoming increasingly important as a source of low-cost fuel for power generation. A new 200-megawatt lignite-burning plant located near Stanton, N.D., was placed in operation early in 1966. Another 172-mega-watt unit in the same area is scheduled for operation late in 1966, and plans have recently been announced for a 212-megawatt unit to be in operation by 1970. If these plants show good performance, western North Dakota could become a major power production center for a large geographic area in the upper midwest. One of the problems associated with the use of lignite in power boilers is its tendency to form troublesome ash deposits on boiler tube surfaces. This problem varies considerably from one lignite-fired boiler to another and is dependent upon such factors as source of lignite, boiler design, load factor, tube metal temperatures, and soot-blowing practices. This report presents data on sodium content* variation in a North Dakota mine, describes the results of a series of tests performed to determine the relationship between ash fouling tendencies and the sodium content, and tells how the mining company and electric utility have coordinated their operations to reduce the ash fouling problem. GENERAL BACKGROUND Until recent years it was generally assumed that North Dakota lignite from a given mine had qualities peculiar to that mine, but that within the mine, the lignite was quite uniform. In 1959, the Otter Tail Power Co. installed a 53.5-megawatt lignite-burning unit at its Hoot Lake plant, Fergus Falls, Minn. Shortly after the unit was put into operation, it was noted that at certain times under high load conditions, ash fouling problems were quite severe, but not consistent or predictable. Each time fouling occurred in the unit the position of the loading shovel at the mine was noted. Within two years it became apparent that there were certain areas in the Knife River Coal Mining Co. mine at Beulah, N.D., where the lignite apparently had a high fouling tendency for the Hoot Lake unit. Results from analyses of the coal did not show large differences in moisture percentage, ash percentage, heating value, or ash fusion temperature between the highly troublesome and less troublesome coals. After three years of operation, the troublesome areas had been quite well defined and the mining company started a procedure of bypassing these areas when load conditions at the plant were high and then returning to the troublesome areas to load the lignite during the summer months when peak loads were lower. It was noted that the lignite from the areas which caused severe fouling under high load conditions produced much less fouling at the lower summer loads. However, bypassing certain areas in the strip pit caused the mining company to disrupt their continuous loading schedule, which in turn upset their continuous stripping schedule and made for less efficient mining operation. Meanwhile, at the Hoot Lake plant, the number of soot blowers on No. 2 boiler had been increased from 30 to 55, and a very rigorous blowing schedule had been adopted resulting in soot blowers operating at least some part of 21 hrs per day. Fouling problems continued, with a resulting reduction in plant economy and reliability. During this period the Federal Bureau of Mines Coal Research Laboratory at Grand Forks, N.D., had initiated various research programs relating to the study of lignite ash and ash fouling problems. One project was a survey in which full seam samples were obtained from various locations in all the major

Jan 1, 1968

By W. E. Bearce

The recent concern for the recovery of even the finest fractions of coal preparation plant feeds has created needs for new equipment. Thermal dryers currently available have difficulty reducing the filter cake moisture on down to the desired point. This difficulty involves 1) the physical problem of handling this wet, sticky material and making each particle accessible to the hot gases, and 2) removing the extremely fine dried particles from the cooled gases. The dryer described in this paper handles the first of these problems, and eliminates the second by the substitution of steel balls for air as the heat transfer medium. As a general statement, the cost of preparing coal for market is inversely proportional to the size of the lumps or particles. In the not too distant past the finer sizes were discarded as being uneconomical to treat and this practice might be still continuing if it were not for the insistence of the public that this material be kept out of our streams. This being the only cost-free outlet, the disposal of fine refuse became a significant item of expense in every preparation plant. When this happened it was only reasonable to look to the recovery of the values in this material, not only to defray this expense, but to reduce the tonnage which had to be wasted. There seemed to be no device available suited to reducing the moisture in this material to what the market requires. All of the fine coal dryers commonly employed make use of air to bring the heat of combustion into contact with the coal particles. Any device employing air as a heat transfer medium, has the following two strikes against it in attempting to handle 28 mesh by 0 filter cake: 1) It is practically impossible to bring the hot air into intimate contact with the enormous number of fine particles stuck together in the cake. 2) Even if this can be effected, it is impossible to remove the dried coal from the air. A wet scrubber must be employed, the discharge of which must go back to the filter and dryer as a circulating load of the most objectionable sort, being the extreme fines. Various compromises have been used to cope with the problem of drying this relatively small tonnage of high moisture coal. Often some of the dried coal is mixed back with the feed to the dryer in an attempt to make the mixture more handleable and more available to contact with the hot air than the filter cake alone would be. This may help to some extent with the first problem but it does nothing about the second and a dryer operated in this way has to be oversized. Sometimes the filter cake is mixed with a coarser fraction for the same reason. Here again, while this may make a mixture (the particles of which are more readily brought into contact with the hot air), the problem of getting the fine coal out of the air remains and a larger percentage of the total coal to be dried is handled by the most expensive means. Mechanical dewatering has accounted for more and more of total coal drying lately and in many cases would satisfactorily handle the whole load, down to 28 mesh, if there were a means available for doing a good job on the —28 mesh by itself. The dryer which is the subject of this paper was designed expressly for doing this job — drying fine material by itself regardless of how wet it may be to start with, how fine it may be, or how gummy and sticky these properties in combination may make it. The essential features are depicted in Fig. 1. A rotating cylinder is supported on a frame in such a way that one end may be raised or lowered by hy-

Jan 1, 1968

By W. B. Jamison

Man's material advance from one level of civilization to the next has involved the development of new, more useful tools and the utilization of energy greater than he alone could produce. These two essentials for material progress have developed at an ever increasing rate in the last century. While the first really successful use of mechanical energy derived from burning fuel was in James Watt's steam engine which pumped water from coal mines in Cornwall about 1770, there was still very little use of mechanical energy in mining by 1900 except for pumping and hoisting. Compressed air, having some of the characteristics of steam and which operated engines not unlike steam engines or steam hammers, powered the first attempts to mine coal with energy greater than human muscle could provide. When direct current-powered traction cars replaced horse-drawn transportation cars on city streets, it was natural that direct current locomotives should begin to replace animal and human power in mine haulage. Slowly, trolley and battery locomotives were developed and introduced. With d-c systems being established for haulage, it was natural that improved cutting machines should be developed and powered by d-c motors. Thus began the years of

Jan 1, 1961

By S. A. Braley

THE first commercial production of bituminous coal in the United States was in 1820, and formation of acid in the areas from which the coal was removed began at that time. Thus it is 130 years since the development of mine acid began. The coal operator has had to deal with the acid water produced in his mines, and his losses from corrosion of pumps and equipment have been tremendous. Other industries and the public have been forced to spend large amounts for their water requirements because of the acid discharge from the mines. There are many contradictions in the literature on this subject probably because of variations in the analytical procedures followed and differences in the methods of calculation and reporting. The opinions previously expressed may be summarized as follows: The production of mine acid has been looked upon as a simple chemical reaction wherein the oxygen of the air has reacted with pyrite to produce ferrous sulphate and free sulphuric acid. This reaction appears in many chemistry texts and generally has not been considered worthy of further study. Since the measurement of hydrogen ion concentration or activity was developed and expressed in terms of pH, indicator and instrumental methods for pH determination have become readily available, making it natural to think of it as a measure of acid content. Special purpose analytical methods applicable to potable waters, sewage effluents, and boiler waters, based in general upon the determination of what may be regarded as impurities, have been applied to more concentrated solutions constituting mine discharges, without reference to the fact that these specialized procedures had been developed to serve as operating guides for water-treatment plants. It has been assumed that the pounds of acid deliv- Table I. Showing pH and Titratable Acid of Varying Concentrations of Ferrous and Ferric Sulphates Ferric Ferrous ion Acldfty Ion Acidity (Fe+++) ppm CaCO3 We++) ppm CaCOa ppm PA equiv. PPm pH equiv. 11.200 1.80 30,000 11,200 3.98 20,000 5,600 2.01 15,000 5,600 4.15 10,000 2,800 2.21 7,500 2,800 4.41 5,000 1.120 2.48 3,000 1,400 4.68 2.500 560 2.60 1,500 140 5.00 250 280 2.65 750 28 5.00 50 112 2.81 300 56 3.07 150 28 3.38 75 ered by a mine was roughly a constant varying with the number of acres mined, and that the concentration of the acid in the drainage was inversely proportional to the volume of flow. Increased flow was thought to result in a dilution of the acid produced. When the Sanitary Water Board of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania established a fellowship at Mellon Institute, the first approach to the problem was to review some of the chemical reactions involved and their relation to acid production. Since the sulphates of iron were among the principal constituents of coal-mine drainage, the first studies were based upon solutions of chemically pure ferrous and ferric sulphate. These are both neutral salts, that is, the iron and the sulphate are equivalent, but they produce acid reactions in water solution because as salts of strong acids with weak bases, they hydrolyze to form acid solutions. Solutions of each salt, of varying concentrations, were prepared and the pH, titrable acidity and iron and sulphate

Jan 1, 1952

By J. W. Leonard

This expanded and more detailed supplement to earlier published work1 is offered as a means to demonstrate the high empirical correlation which exists between the readily measured coal bench scale test parameters of volatile matter (d & a.f.), Hard-grove grindability index (HGI), Koppers cone bulk density (BD) and pulverization level (% passing a 1/8-in. screen) to the less readily measured full scale coke stability index. Thus, Fig. 1, 2 and 3 represent the correlated test data contained in Tables I, II and III respectively. Ninety-six coals are correlated so that 97% of the resultant cokes fall within two points and 100% fall within three points of the actual tested coke stability indices. The main generalizations which can be drawn from the correlation of these coals are as follows: 1) The coke stability indices for higher bulk density coals (46.0 BD to 50.6 BD) appear to be largely influenced by differing combinations of factors for coals above and below a pivotal point of approximately 36% to 37% volatile matter. Below this pivotal volatile matter coke stability index appears to be influenced largely as a result of changes to the coal volatile matter and pulverization level. While above this pivotal volatile matter coke stability indices appear to be dependent on the coal hardness, as measured by the HGI, and to some extent upon coal volatile matter. Pulverization appears to have little influence on the coke stabilities of the harder coals (52 HGI to 58 HGI) of greater than 36% to 37% volatile matter. 2) The coke stability indices for lower bulk density coals (41 BD to 45.9 BD) appears to be largely influenced by changes to coal volatile matter and pulverization level for softer coals above approximately 58 HGI. 3) The main empirical observation to be drawn from these results is that for coals above approximately 36% to 37% volatile matter the quantities of hard and soft constituents as measured by the HGI are important when defining coal rank for correlation to the coke stability index.

Jan 1, 1965

By J. Quigley

As the outcrop mines in the West developed into underground operations, systems of ground support were gradually evolved. In the early coal mines there was little need for support except near the dirt line in portals, where stone masonry was common. Where the top was shaley or broken, native pine props with light cross bars and legs furnished enough support even in Utah's 25-ft coal seams. As depth of workings increased. roofs and backs of the same general nature as those near the surface became more and more unstable and required more and more support. Some coal airways show this tendency very clearly. From the surface down the same type of roof shows deterioration which an experienced eye can translate into a measure of depth under surface rather than change in rock characteristics. Rock bolts, developed by various companies and by the U. S. Bureau of Mines, have become an effective substitute for timber in sections of some metal and nonmetal mines formerly requiring escessive timber support, and further use of war surplus landing mats, chain link fencing, and a new punched channel developed by one of the steel companies has enabled other mines to operate deposits where costs of timber and lack of clearance for timber support would have prohibited mining. The block caving mines have made extensive use of reinforced concrete underground to achieve similar ends under difficult conditions. Steel sets are standard in many Bureau of Reclamation projects, although these are usually covered in with concrete to make the permanent structures the Bureau's reclamation projects require. But the use of steel in mining operations is limited and has been confined principally to the iron ore mines of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Some mines have installed used rail as posts, caps, and crossbars, but a rail section is not suited for load carrying, and used rails are generally brittle. having a tendency to fail without warning when overloaded. European mines were the first to reach the size of worked out areas and depths of cover resulting in major roof problems. The Europeans resorted to pack walls and masonry walls, in conjunction with timber arched sets. rail arches, and combination timber and rail and steel arches. The give in these pack walls and wooden blocking was supplemented by a hinge in the center of the arch. This design is called an articulated arch Through various refinements of this principle of the support giving graduallv with the load. Toussaint-Heintzmann developed the yielding or sliding arches, in which yield is accomplished by friction in the overlapping joints of the arch. This type has gained widespread acceptance in the Ruhr and Lorraine Basin and is being manufactured by Bethlehem Steel for sale in this country. In North America the anthracite mines in Pennsylvania, followed by certain iron ore mines in upper Michigan and Canada, were the first to employ these arches to any extent. The practice was later adopted by Kennecott at Ruth, Nev., and by others. Despite high initial cost, the use of these arches is growing in many parts of the country because of their suitability in heavy ground. In its present form of manufacture the yield-able arch consists of open U-shaped rolled section with heavy beads on the edge. The open edge of the U is placed toward the wall. The section nests in another section of the same dimensions, and an arch can be built up from rolled radii and tangents of various weights and lengths. Sections are fastened together by U bolts and saddles. The lap on the joint varies from 12 to 24 in., and ordinarily the bolts are tightened with a 1-in. drive air wrench. The arches are spaced with channel struts held by J bolts and saddles. Sections can also be obtained that are composed of various combinations of radii and tangents and true circles. The joints can be placed to bear against anticipated loads and asymmetrical loads imposed by dipping strata. In the arches now being manufactured clearance widths up to 19 ft are obtainable in weights of sections from 9 to 30 lb per ft. The circular cross sections are available in the same weights ranging from 8 to 16 ft diam. At present most of the arches sold are supplied only in carload lots. It is hoped that demand will grow so that distributors can stock various weights and sections to give small operators a chance to try this new type of rock support under their own particular conditions. Several excellent papers have discussed the properties of various sections now manufactured, the dimensions of the sets obtainable, and their application under widely differing conditions. The present article will describe the methods and results of a special use of the arches at Kaiser Steel mine No. 3. Sunnyside, Utah. Problem at Mine No. 3 : In 1953 Kaiser Steel Corp. laid out Sunnyside mine No. 3 to recover coking coal left by the previous operator, Utah Fuel Co.. below workings that had been abandoned in 1928. Two seams had been worked, the upper and lower, separated by 30 to 42 ft of rock. Approximately 10 million tons of coal had been extracted from this area some 3000 ft down the itch from the outcrop to a 1500-ft depth of cover. The mine had been opened by slopes in both upper and lower seams. Sometime in the late 1920's the lower slope

Jan 1, 1960

By C. E. Lesher

Two processes for agglomerating fine sized ores with low temperature coke are described. One process (Orcarb) agglomerates ores with limited amounts of carbon; the other (ore-carbon pellets) pelletizes fine sized ores, using low temperature cokes as the binder. Data are presented on the products obtained when taconite, magnetite, and hematite concentrates and several titanium oxide ores were used. REDUCTION of finely divided oxide ores has long been a major metallurgical problem. Various methods of agglomerating, notably briquetting, sintering, nodulizing, and pelletizing, have been developed and are in industrial use. Carbon is the usual reducing agent for oxide ores and attempts have been made to agglomerate fine ores with coking coal in order to get the metallurgical advantages of intimate contact and increased particle sizes suitable for subsequent smelting or reduction.1-3 For the past three years, research has been in progress on two processes for combining fine sized ores with reactive carbon in the form of low temperature coke. By one process, designated Orcarb, the ore is coated with coke carbon in amounts limited to that required for reduction and the result is an appreciable but limited increase in product particle size over that of the original ore. The second process, called ore-carbon pellets, produces pellets of fine ore bound by low temperature coke. The first objective was to develop a process for combining an oxide ore with only enough carbon for its reduction, the amount being that derived from the simple reduction equations. The carbon (that amount theoretically required for the reduction of the oxides in an agglomerate with ore), calculated to CO, ranges from 10 pct for zinc calcines or phosphate ores to 21 pct for rutile and 26 pct for silica. The carbon required for reducing iron oxides falls between the extremes—10 and 26 pct. When the carbon in the agglomerate is low temperature coke, reduction by hydrogen may be expected to take place, thus modifying the calculated carbon require- ment. On the other hand, in practice, an excess of reducing agent over that required in theory is normally used. Screen sizes of three iron ores on which the greater part of the experimental work was performed are given in Table I. Most of the testing was done with Freeport (Renton Mine) coal, but Pittsburgh and Elkhorn bed coals were also used. The first objective was to agglomerate the ore with sufficient low temperature coke to provide carbon for reduction, i.e., in the range from 10 to 25 pct. This was accomplished by preheating the ore, mixing with pulverized coking coal, and completing the coal carbonization in a plain steel rotating retort. The pilot retort, as it is now constituted, is shown by diagram in Fig. 1 and photograph, Fig. 2. Ore is fed into the upper kiln by a screw; it is heated to 900" to 1100°F by direct flame and it is then discharged into an insulating hopper from which it goes

Jan 1, 1956

By H. Pew, J. H. Field

To alleviate pollution more restrictive legislation is being enacted, either limiting emission of pollutants or the type of fuel that can be utilized. The nature and magnitude of air pollution problems affecting the mining, preparation, coking and combustion of coal are described. Methods for combatting particulate emissions by use of mechanical separators and electrostatic pre-cipitors are discussed. Proposed methods to meet the problem of gaseous emissions currently receiving considerable attention are described, with special emphasis on methods to decrease pollution by sulfur oxides. Concern about air pollution goes back several centuries, but until very recently most effort has been aimed at coal smoke and other visible pollutants. The classic example of a 'successful' campaign for smoke abatement and control is the fruitful combined effort of the city of Pittsburgh and its surrounding Allegheny County, which eventually led to the reconstruction of downtown Pittsburgh at an estimated cost of one billion dollars. Historically, the city's downtown Golden Triangle district had been afflicted by pollutants evolving from steel mills, from a variety of other industries, and from railroad locomotives. Efforts to alleviate the situation prior to 1943 were virtually ineffective. In 1945, however, a comprehensive redevelopment plan was prepared and backed by state authority. Within a few years a clean, modern metropolis has evolved where once stood America's famous 'smoky city.' But the victory in Pittsburgh, as in various other American cities, has not solved the national problem. Current estimates indicate that 133 million tons annually of air pollutants from all sources still are emitted annually into the atmosphere above the United States. About 10% of this annual effluent is particulate matter so that most of the remaining pollution problems will be solved only when other effluents are reduced. Essentially, these are sulfur oxides, nitro- gen oxides, hydrocarbons, and carbon monoxide. Over the years, both states and local communities have tended to increase the restrictions on smoke and fly ash — problems mostly of concern in the combustion of coal. Prior to the middle 1950's, ordinances sometimes permitted emissions of smoke equivalent to as much as No. 3 on the Ringlemann scale. Since 1956, no ordinance has been passed which allows smoke of greater than No. 2. Under today's conditions of improved fuels, equipment and practice, a few communities have passed laws prohibiting emission of smoke of any density darker than Ringlemann No. 1. The majority of existing laws on fly ash emission in the U.S. limit emissions equivalent to 0.85 lb of fly ash per 1000 Ib of flue gas. In recent years, however, regulations which have been adopted give cognizance to the higher level of performance now obtainable with improved equipment. A comparison of the restrictions of five codes adopted since 1960 is given in Table I. The most stringent of these is the one for New York City which provides for a maximum emission of 0.6 lb fly ash per million Btu heat release (equivalent to roughly 0.51 lb/1000 lb of flue gas). The first comprehensive effort to restrict the emission of SO2 resulted from the passage of a 1937 law in St. Louis. This regulation stipulated that coal containing in excess of 23% volatile matter and 2% sulfur must be washed, thereby presumably producing some effective reduction in the input sulfur content. This was followed in 1949 by a Los Angeles County law which prohibited the emission of SO2 in concentrations greater than 0.2%. Most SO2-restrictive legislation passed since that date has been based on this limiting 0.2% SO2 by volume, although modifications are occasionally permitted under selected conditions, sometimes based on the fact that certain limiting ground concentrations are not exceeded — such as in the rules adopted by the San Francisco Bay area. To date, no legislation has been passed in the U.S. to limit the generation of nitrogen oxides from the combustion of fossil fuels. However, such oxides are considered to be of potential importance in air pollution control because of their possible detrimental effects on health and their reported role in the formation of photochemical smog. Interest in reducing oxides of nitrogen from powerplant and auto exhausts is increasing and regulations limiting their quantity can be expected in the future.

Jan 1, 1968

By Louis C. McCabe

The control of dusts and fumes of submicron size is involved in many process industries. This paper presents in tabular form the quantitative data from a number of metallurgical operations and discusses allowable discharge in terms of effluent-weight ratio. Typical installations for recovery of stack effluents are cited. THERE are many sources of smoke, fumes, gases, and dusts that may cause undesirable contamination in an industrial area. Fumes and gases are the result of chemical action or volatilization, while dusts are produced in processes of disintegration and dispersion. Commonly, smokes are suspended particles formed by combustion or destructive distillation. Methods for controlling smoke are generally known, and great improvements have been made in equipment for removing fine dusts and fumes from gases. In most of the industrial centers of the country, the chief duty of the air-pollution abatement agency is the elimination or reduction of emissions resulting from improper combustion. Correct methods of firing, proper fuel selection, and installation of properly designed equipment may accomplish this. It is becoming more widely recognized that much of the contamination of an industrial atmosphere is caused by dusts, fumes, and gases that are not related to the process of combustion. As such emissions are usually a functional part of plant operation, they rarely can be prevented even by better design and careful operation. When dusts, fumes, and gases are an integral part of the operation, mechanical equipment must be designed to remove these emissions. Most of the dusts and fumes that should be controlled are less than 1 micron in size. Control of such small particles is largely a new and untried field in many industrial areas. However, where conditions have been critical, effective control equipment for dusts, fumes, and gases has been in operation for many years. The problem is not one of smoke abatement and requires an entirely different set of standards for effective solution. Identical standards need not be applied to all industrial areas because of differences in meteorology, physiography, plant location, plant density, and nature of stack effluents. In this paper, discussion of control of atmospheric contamination by industrial plants refers specifically to the Los Angeles area, but the method of approach is applicable to any area where similar problems are encountered. Quantities of particulate matter reported in analysis of stack effluents indicate the need for standards of emission. Many types of dusts and fumes that contribute materially to the air-pollution problem are discharged into the atmosphere at a lower rate than 0.40 grain per cu ft at standard conditions. On the other hand, some stacks discharge at a higher

Jan 1, 1951

By Louis C. McCabe

The control of dusts and fumes of submicron size is involved in many process industries. This paper presents in tabular form the quantitative data from a number of metallurgical operations and discusses allowable discharge in terms of effluent-weight ratio. Typical installations for recovery of stack effluents are cited. THERE are many sources of smoke, fumes, gases, and dusts that may cause undesirable contamination in an industrial area. Fumes and gases are the result of chemical action or volatilization, while dusts are produced in processes of disintegration and dispersion. Commonly, smokes are suspended particles formed by combustion or destructive distillation. Methods for controlling smoke are generally known, and great improvements have been made in equipment for removing fine dusts and fumes from gases. In most of the industrial centers of the country, the chief duty of the air-pollution abatement agency is the elimination or reduction of emissions resulting from improper combustion. Correct methods of firing, proper fuel selection, and installation of properly designed equipment may accomplish this. It is becoming more widely recognized that much of the contamination of an industrial atmosphere is caused by dusts, fumes, and gases that are not related to the process of combustion. As such emissions are usually a functional part of plant operation, they rarely can be prevented even by better design and careful operation. When dusts, fumes, and gases are an integral part of the operation, mechanical equipment must be designed to remove these emissions. Most of the dusts and fumes that should be controlled are less than 1 micron in size. Control of such small particles is largely a new and untried field in many industrial areas. However, where conditions have been critical, effective control equipment for dusts, fumes, and gases has been in operation for many years. The problem is not one of smoke abatement and requires an entirely different set of standards for effective solution. Identical standards need not be applied to all industrial areas because of differences in meteorology, physiography, plant location, plant density, and nature of stack effluents. In this paper, discussion of control of atmospheric contamination by industrial plants refers specifically to the Los Angeles area, but the method of approach is applicable to any area where similar problems are encountered. Quantities of particulate matter reported in analysis of stack effluents indicate the need for standards of emission. Many types of dusts and fumes that contribute materially to the air-pollution problem are discharged into the atmosphere at a lower rate than 0.40 grain per cu ft at standard conditions. On the other hand, some stacks discharge at a higher

Jan 1, 1951

By Orville R. Lyons

CENTRIFUGAL force has been utilized for the dewatering of fine coal for over 50 years by means of machines commonly called centrifugal dryers. In any centrifuge the coal and water are subjected to a spinning action which usually inctedtocreases in intensity as the coal progresses through the machine. This spinning action, or the centrifugal force that it induces, tears water away from coal particles and produces a dewatered coal. The effectiveness of the dewatering action for any particular machine is governed by the size-consist of the coal and the centrifugal force imparted to the water on the coal. Four makes of centrifuge are currently being used to dewater fine bituminous coal in the United States. These include the vertical, basket-screen C.M.I. (Centrifugal and Mechanical Industries) Carpenter, Reineveld, and the horizontal solid-bowl Bird. The C.M.I. and Reineveld centrifuges are similar in construction and are variations of the Elmore centrifuge, varying principally in the slope of the basket, operating speed, size of perforations in the basket, and diameter of the basket. The same operating description suffices for both. These centrifuges are made up of two rotating elements, an outside conical screen frame and an inside solid cone which carries spiral pusher blades. The screen frame is supported by a hollow shaft, and the solid cone by a spindle shaft passing through the hollow shaft. Both the screen frame and the solid cone rotate at high speeds; the solid cone, with its scraping flights, rotating somewhat more slowly than the screen. The wet coal enters the machine at the top, falls on the cone, and is thrown against the screen by centrifugal force. The coal slides down the screen until it meets the upper end of the flights, where it is moved slowly along the flights until discharged at the bottom. The elfluent passes through the sieve basket or screen and discharges into a launder. The Carpenter centrifuge consists of a conical rotating element with a vertical axis, built up of three rows of perforated stainless-steel plates or stainless-steel wedge-wire or round-wire sections cut and rolled to conform to the surface of the cone. Wet material is delivered to a conical hopper inside the centrifuge casing and is distributed in a thin, even layer over the inner surface of the cone by a disk mounted on the rotor shaft. Impacting of the coal against the screen and the centrifugal force exerted as the material moves downwards creates a dewatering effect. The moisture is forced through the coal bed and then through the perforated plates of the basket, collecting in a circular trough built into the centrifuge. The effluent is conducted from the trough through the centrifuge casing by outlet pipes. The dewatered coal is discharged over the inside bottom edge of the rotor. The Bird centrifuge consists of a tank or truncated conical shell, which is revolved at the desired speed by means of a drive sheave. A screw conveyor rotates inside the cone or bowl at a slightly lower speed in the same direction of rotation. The feed entrance, in the center of the large end of the truncated cone, is high enough to allow formation of a pool of slurry. Adjustable effluent-discharge ports are located in the large end of the bowl so the level of the liquid can be regulated. The solids are moved forward by the screw conveyor as fast as deposited and carried above the level of the pool for an interval before leaving the bowl. In the past these four makes of centrifuge could be compared only by indirect means. The author published a rough comparison method in 1949' but

Jan 1, 1952

By D. S. Choi, R. Stefanko

There are a number of complex factors that influence the effectiveness of anchorage to maintain tension in rock bolts. However, a plastic analysis of the anchorage site employing certain simplifying assumptions with application of the Mohr-Coulomb criterion appears to explain the observed phenomena. Such an analysis has been made and a correlation sought with field and laboratory tests. Field tests were made in an anthracite mine in eastern Pennsylvania and included pull tests and long-term tests of a variety of anchorage devices in two basic lengths, 30 and 42 in. in two widely differing seams. Performance is reviewed for wedge, expansion shell, and resin anchorage. Laboratory tests duplicated many of the field conditions but in addition compared the performance of shells with normal and reversed serrations. This performance was compared with the predicted results from the plastic analysis. One of the major problems in conducting long-term underground tests is the selection of suitable instrumentation. All installed bolts were fitted with spherical and hardened washers to insure the best possible torque wrench readings. In addition, commercially available load cells were used. Finally, the performance of a specially developed strain-gage-equipped ring cell is viewed. Rock bolting as a method of support continues to increase with applications in many other industries in addition to mining. Nevertheless, with nearly 55,000,000 roof bolts installed in coal mines alone last year, this remains as the single greatest use. While bolts have frequently supported ground where conventional timbering could not, there are relatively few design criteria; and trial-and-error procedures prevail. Furthermore, there has been a lag in development of suitable instrumentation that is simple to install and read out, sensitive, durable, reliable, safe, and economical in evaluating the effectiveness of a bolt over long periods of time. Therefore, the pull test continues to be the most popular method of evaluating the applicability of a certain type of roof bolt under specific installation conditions. At The Pennsylvania State University in the Dept. of Mining, research has been conducted for a number of years to measure bleed off in carefully controlled laboratory experiments as well as in underground investigations."-' Unfortunately, most of the instrumentation developed has been primarily suitable only for research purposes, not possessing all of the aforementioned characteristics desirable for routine underground use. Other groups also have met with restricted success. Therefore, while relatively crude, the torque wrench continues to remain as the most widely used load measuring device. While both field and laboratory tests continue to be con- ducted, analytical analyses are attempted to discover the more important design parameters in order that more efficient anchorage might be devised. Bolts are being used for a greater variety of purposes in mining. Suspending wire sideframe belt conveyors from roof bolts is a common application. The suspension of a monorail transportation system presents yet another. One such system has just been installed in a recently reopened anthracite mine and is presently being evaluated under production conditions. Preliminary studies revealed that a considerable cost reduction was possible by suspending the monorail on bolts anchored in the top. The monorail was to be installed under two widely differing conditions—a competent sandstone above the Buck Mountain seam and a softer shale top above the Skidmore. The type of anchorage device, length of bolt, and long-term performance, consistent with economy and safety, had to be established for the installation once the decision was made to suspend the system on rock bolts. This paper describes some of the testing procedures leading to a final selection. Theoretical Analysis of Expansion Shell Anchorage A detailed look at an expansion shell assembly might shed some light on the factors involved in the design of a suitable shell, Fig. 1. When a bolt is rotated, the tapered plug is forced downward, expanding the leaves laterally to grip the sides of the hole. Two friction surfaces are present: (1) the interface of the plug and leaf and (2) the interface between leaf and rock. The relationships of these friction planes, geometry of expansion shell, and properties of the rock are important in the design of an expansion shell. Therefore, an analysis assuming the rock to behave as a rigid plastic material with its yield governed by the Mohr-Coulomb criterion was made." Furthermore, the effect of friction between the leaf and rock produced by serrations was analyzed.

Jan 1, 1971

By J. R. Lewis, J. H. Hamilton, V. D. Hanson, K. W. Heinlein, J. M.194-000-000-006 Vonfeld, J. P. Denny

TWO overfeed drum-type separators using a suspension of magnetite in water as the separating medium have been installed in the Champion NO. 1 preparation plant of the Pittsburgh Coal Co., Division of the Pittsburgh Consolidation Coal Company. A simplified flow diagram of the Champion No. 1 coarse coal circuit is shown in Fig. 1. A railroad car rotary dump, capable of handling 20 cars per hr, discharges the coal into a hopper. Coal is fed from the hopper of the rotary dump to a 60-in. belt conveyor by two reciprocating pan-type feeders. The belt conveyor feeds the run of mine coal onto the main raw coal screen. The first deck is fitted with 3 in. round hole perforated plate which removes the 3x0-in. coal. The second deck of the screen is equipped with 6-in. lip screens which separate the remaining coal into +6 in. and 6x3 in. The +6 in. coal is transferred to a shaking picking table and then discharged onto the loading boom. The 6x3-in. coal is fed to the No. 2 dense medium vessel for cleaning. The clean coal from this unit flows to a vibrating screen where the medium is removed and the coal sized into 6x4 in. and 4x3 in. The 6x4-in. coal is transferred to the loading booms and the 4x3-in. is conveyed to the clean coal classifying screens to remove degradation. The 3x0-in. raw coal is blended in a system composed of three storage bins having a total capacity of 400 tons. From these bins the coal is fed onto a 48-in. flight conveyor by three reciprocating feeders. This flight conveyor delivers the coal to the Rheo plant. The 3x0-in. coal is then cleaned in two 48-in. Rheolaveur launders each equipped with two Rheo boxes. The first set of boxes removes a primary refuse and the second set produces a middling product which is recirculated in the launders. The cleaned coal and water overflows from the primary launders to two sizing and dewatering shaker screens where the water and — -in. coal are removed for further cleaning in the Rheo fine coal plant. The 3x3h-in. clean coal is combined with the 4x3-in. coal from the No. 2 vessel, sized into 4x2 in., 2x1 34 in., and 1'/4x in., then sent to the loading booms. The 3x0-in. refuse from the primary launders is normally fed to the No. 1 dense medium circuit, but any portion or all of this material can, as an alternate, be processed in the Rheo rewash launder. The primary refuse when fed to the dense medium circuit is screened into YSXO which is cleaned in the fine coal plant and 3x for cleaning in the No. 1 vessel. The clean coal from this vessel is passed over a vibrating drainage and rinse screen, then sluiced to the rewash sizing shaker where it is dewatered and sized for loading. The installation of a pilot plant separating vessel using a suspension of magnetite in water was pro-

Jan 1, 1953