We have thoroughly documented for you the existence of very real technologies which could enable us to convert our abundant coal into much-needed liquid transportation fuels and raw materials for our chemical manufacturing industries.
We have verified our reports with published news stories and with technical articles presented in scientific journals.
Herein we send you a complete textbook on the subject.
We'll forego excerpting passages accessible through the enclosed links, and won't append following comments.
But, note: This text was published prior to WWII in Great Britain. It was authored by one of the German scientists who invented the coal-to-liquid fuel process which the Nazis, and their Japanese allies, employed, as we've thoroughly documented, to power a war machine that overran most of Europe and much of Asia, and battered England's United Kingdom to it's knees. If you have been following our posts, you will know that somewhat similar circumstances are now evolving, wherein Communist China, a nation really not all that friendly to us, is forging ahead with a massive coal-to-oil industrialization based on technology and technical assistance provided by the United States, and others. It seems they have been receiving much assistance and guidance from West Virginia University, as we've documented, who are helping the Chinese to commercialize what is known as "The West Virginia Process" for converting coal into liquid fuels.
As follows:
The Conversion of Coal into Oils
by Dr. Franz Fischer
Authorized English Translation
Edited
with a Foreword and Notes
by
R. Lessing
London: Ernst Benn Limited
8 Bouverie Street, E.C.4
1925
Table of Contents
Section 1 534kb | Foreword | i | ||||
Author's Preface | ii | |||||
Contents | v | |||||
List of Illustrations | ix | |||||
List of Tables | xi | |||||
Introduction | 15 | |||||
Section 2 608kb | I. | Extraction by Solvents | 20 | |||
(a) | The Yield of Oil by Extraction | 20 | ||||
(b) | Identification of Chemical Compounds in the Extracts | 20 | ||||
II. | Production and Working-Up of Primary Tar | 22 | ||||
(a) | Methods of Destructive Distillation of Fuels | 22 | ||||
(b) | Special Laboratory Methods for the Production of Primary Tar | 24 | ||||
(c) | Yields of Primary Tar From Coal and Peat | 25 | ||||
(d) | Proximate Composition of Primary Tars | 27 | ||||
(e) | The Temperatures Required for the Production of Primary Tar | 28 | ||||
Section 3 779kb | (f) | Differentiation Between Various Primary Tars and Other Tars | 30 | |||
(g) | The Chemical Compounds Found in Primary Tar and in Primary Benzines | 38 | ||||
(h) | The Liquor From Low-Temperature Carbonization | 43 | ||||
(i) | Composition and Application of Low-Temperature Carbonization Gas | 43 | ||||
Section 4 865kb | (k) | The Low-Temperature Benzine | 46 | |||
(l) | The Position of Primary Tar Between Coke-Oven Tar and Petroleum | 49 | ||||
(m) | Semi-Coke | 50 | ||||
(n) | The Heat Balance of Low-Temperature Carbonization | 56 | ||||
(o) | The Development of Commercial Primary Tar Production | 58 | ||||
1. | Distillation Apparatus with External Heating | 59 | ||||
Vertical Retorts | 60 | |||||
Section 5 939kb | Horizontal Retorts | 64 | ||||
Tunnel Kilns | 68 | |||||
Rotary Retorts | 71 | |||||
Retorts with Inner Lining | 76 | |||||
2. | Internal Heating | 76 | ||||
Superheated Steam as Heating Agent | 76 | |||||
Hot Producer Gas as Heating Medium | 78 | |||||
Hot Coke-oven Gas as Heating Medium | 79 | |||||
Carbonisation by means of Flue Gasses | 80 | |||||
Section 6 1002kb | 3. | Combined Apparatus | 81 | |||
Hot-Run Generators fitted with Carbonising Retorts | 81 | |||||
Retorts Combined with Low-Temperature Producers | 84 | |||||
Preliminary Carbonization of Furnace Fuel | 87 | |||||
(p) | The Influence of Retort Design Upon the Composition of Primary Tars and Gas Benzines | 89 | ||||
(q) | The Influence of Coal Drying on the Oil Recovery | 91 | ||||
(r) | Utilisation and Working-Up of Primary Tar | 94 | ||||
1. | Direct Utilisation of Primary Tar | 94 | ||||
2. | Working-Up of Primary Tar by Distillation | 94 | ||||
Chemical Changes on Distillation | 94 | |||||
Section 7 544kb | Working-up by Distillation at Ordinary Pressure | 97 | ||||
Distillation at Ordinary Pressure and Chemical Treatment | 99 | |||||
Working-up of Primary Tar by means of Superheated Steam and Chemical Treatment | 100 | |||||
Working-up in a High Vacuum | 104 | |||||
3. | Separation and Utilisation of Phenols | 106 | ||||
The Disadvantages of Phenols and their Corrosion of Metals | 106 | |||||
The Utilisation of Phenols | 108 | |||||
Methods of Separation of Phenols hitherto in Use | 108 | |||||
Section 8 292kb | The Recovery of the Phenols by means of Superheated Water | 110 | ||||
Section 9 959kb | 4. | The Reduction of Phenols of Primary Coal Tar to Benzol and Toluol | 117 | |||
Section 10 605kb | 5. | Benzine by Destructive Distillation of Primary Tar from Bituminous or Brown Coal | 137 | |||
Benzine by Cracking of Primary Tar at Ordinary Pressure | 140 | |||||
Benzine by Cracking under Pressure | 146 | |||||
Section 11 705kb | Benzine by the Burton Process | 150 | ||||
Benzine by Cracking and Simultaneous Hydrogenation under High Pressure | 151 | |||||
6. | The Hydrogenation of Primary Tars, Tar Oils and Phenols | 158 | ||||
With Catalysts | 158 | |||||
Without Catalysts | 159 | |||||
7. | Summary of the Recovery of Light Motor Spirits From Primary Tars | 160 | ||||
8. | Purification of Primary Tar Oils by Oxidation Under Pressure | 164 | ||||
Section 12 414kb | 9. | Formation of resins and Asphalt from Primary Tar by Oxidation under Pressure | 166 | |||
10. | Fatty Acids from Crude Paraffin Wax by Oxidation under Pressure | 166 | ||||
(s) | Conversion of Low-Temperature Carbonisation Tar into Coke-oven Tar | 166 | ||||
(t) | Conversion of Brown Coal Tar into Aromatic Tar | 169 | ||||
(u) | Liquid Motor Fuels by Hydrogenation of Coal Tar, and Especially by Naphthalene | 170 | ||||
(v) | Importance of Primary Tar as Raw Material | 173 | ||||
Section 13 568kb | II. | Hydrogenation of Coal | 174 | |||
(a) | By Means of Hydriodic Acid Under Pressure According to Berthelot | 174 | ||||
(b) | Comparative Hydrogenation of Different Coals with Hydriodic | 177 | ||||
(c) | Hydrogenation by Means of Sodium Formate | 179 | ||||
Section 14 626kb | (d) | Hydrogenation by Means of Carbon Monoxide and Water | 187 | |||
(e) | Hydrogenation with Sodium Carbonate and Hydrogen | 195 | ||||
(f) | Destructive Distillation of Bituminous Coal at Higher Hydrogen Pressures | 197 | ||||
(g) | Hydrogenation of Coal According to Bergius at High Hydrogen Pressure | 198 | ||||
Section 15 569kb | IV. | Synthetic Processes | 202 | |||
(a) | The Action of Electric Discharges | 202 | ||||
(b) | Catalytic Experiments at Ordinary Pressure | 203 | ||||
(c) | Liquid Hydrocarbons from Carbon Monoxide and Hydrogen Under Pressure | 206 | ||||
(d) | Alcohols and Formaldehyde from Carbon Monoxide and Hydrogen Under Pressure | 210 | ||||
(e) | Methyl Alcohol and Oils by Decomposition of Formates | 211 | ||||
Section 16 610kb | (f) | Synthol From Carbon Monoxide and Water Vapour Under Pressure | 213 | |||
(g) | Catalytic Experiments in the Presence of Nitrogen | 219 | ||||
(h) | Catalytic Experiments with Carbon Dioxide and Hydrogen under Pressure | 221 | ||||
(i) | Synthol from Water Gas Under Pressure | 221 | ||||
1. | On the Need of a Metallic Hydrogen Carrier in the Contact Material | 221 | ||||
2. | Influence of the Form and Length by the Contact Material | 223 | ||||
3. | Influence of Bases and their Quantity upon the Oil Yield | 224 | ||||
Section 17 646kb | 4. | Experiments with Hydrogen Carriers other than Iron | 227 | |||
5. | Influence of the Composition of Water Gas | 229 | ||||
6. | Influence of Impurities in Water Gas | 232 | ||||
7. | Influence of Temperature, Pressure and Gas Velocity | 232 | ||||
8. | Determination of Yields in the Circulation Apparatus | 234 | ||||
(k) | Carbon Dioxide and Hydrogen in the Circulation Apparatus | 240 | ||||
(l) | Carbon Dioxide and Methane in the Circulation Apparatus | 241 | ||||
Section 18 641kb | (m) | Carbon Monoxide and Methane in the Circulation Apparatus | 241 | |||
(n) | Examination of Products of Reaction | 246 | ||||
(o) | Road Tests of Synthol | 248 | ||||
(p) | Conversion of Synthol into Synthin | 248 | ||||
(q) | Formation of Petroleum from Water Gas | 248 | ||||
(r) | Attempt at an Explanation of the Synthol Process | 250 | ||||
Section 19 664kb | (s) | Industrial Applicability of the Synthol Process | 255 | |||
V. | Hydrocarbons from Carbides | 258 | ||||
(a) | Carbides which Directly Yield Liquid Hydrocarbons | 258 | ||||
(b) | Carbides Giving Hydrocarbons which can be Converted inot Liquids | 261 | ||||
Appendix (Editor's Notes) | 263 | |||||
(a) | Recent Developments in Low-Temperature Carbonisation | 263 | ||||
Parker Plant | 263 | |||||
Maclaurin | 266 | |||||
Section 20 825kb | (b) | Lessing Process for the Separation of Oils and Pitch from Tar | 269 | |||
(c) | Hydrogenation of Coal in the Absence of Oil | 271 | ||||
Bibliography | 274 | |||||
Index | 279 |