Herein is documented yet another unheralded and virtually unknown government-sponsored investigation of coal-to-liquid conversion technology.
Oddly enough, the goal of this government project, conducted in almost total obscurity on a military reservation about as far removed from the major eastern US Appalachian coal deposits as it is possible to get, was to obtain clean coal fuels, both liquid and solid, by first dissolving the coal - no doubt high-ash and low-Btu western lignite - in a solvent, much as in West Virginia University's direct coal liquefaction process.
In other words, they would first liquefy the coal, then clean it, and then either use the resulting liquids, or, almost perversely, according to this and other documents, reconsolidate it prior to use as a boiler fuel.
The excerpt:
"Abstract
The operating history of a Solvent Refined Coal (SRC) Pilot Plant from start-up through March 1978 is discussed. The Solvent Refined Coal Process SRC I (solid fuel product) and SRC II (liquid fuel product) operating modes for converting high-sulfur, high-ash bituminous coals into low-sulfur, ash-free boiler fuels have been successfully demonstrated. Extended periods of operation with both operating modes have been achieved and substantial quantities of both the solid (more than 3500 tons) and liquid (nearly 6000 barrels or 954 cu m) fuels have been produced. A large scale burning test of the solid fuel product has been successfully concluded, and a similar test using the distillate fuel product is planned. A comprehensive study of the effects of operating variables on product yield distributions has been helpful in identifying the most favorable operating conditions in both modes of operation."
More on the Fort Lewis project to follow.