Enclosed are a set of links and excerpts that are just samples of what is available from Penn State University, on their technical research, some of it done in partnership with Gulf Oil, into the detailed reality of coal-to-liquid conversion technology.Again, these are just samples of what is available. But, note that the work spans decades. And, the only documented public presentation of any of it was two decades ago, in an obscure conference on the other side of the world. It might as well have been on the far side of the moon.Brief comment follows:------------Dependence of coal liquefaction behaviour on coal characteristics. 1. Vitrinite-rich samplesPeter H. Given, Donald C. Cronauer, William Spackman, Harold L. Lovell, Alan Davis and Bimal BiswasCollege of Earth and Mineral Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA
Gulf Research and Development Co., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Abstract
The liquefaction behaviour of a number of vitrinite-rich coals has been determined in batch autoclaves at temperatures of 385–425 °C and pressures of about 8.6 MPa (85 atm) of hydrogen. In one set of experiments, impregnated ammonium molybdate was used as catalyst, with no added liquid as vehicle. In a second set, a proprietary catalyst was used and anthracene oil served as vehicle. Lignites, sub-bituminous, medium-volatile and low-volatile bituminous coals gave relatively poor conversions. However, a lignite sample that had been subjected to ion-exchange treatments gave high conversion, and the viscosity and structural parameters of the products varied with the nature of the treatment. In general the highest conversions were observed for coals in the high-volatile bituminous range, but within this broad range and for the comparatively small set of samples studied neither these data nor the structural characteristics of the products show any very evident correlation with rank parameters or with the geological history of the sample. Two geologically young bituminous coals from the Pacific Coal Province gave excellent conversions; both had very high mineral-matter contents, a fact that may be very relevant.
Dependence of coal liquefaction behaviour on coal characteristics. 2. Role of petrographic compositionPeter H. Given, Donald C. Cronauer, William Spackman, Harold L. Lovell, Alan Davis and Bimal Biswas
College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA
Gulf Research and Development Co., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
June 1974.AbstractThe techniques used were the same as those used in Part 1 (p 34). Comparison of the liquefaction behaviour of two lithotypes from a Kentucky bituminous coal indicated that in this process pseudovitrinite is a reactive maceral. The hydrogenation of sets of maceral concentrates obtained from a New Mexico sub-bituminous and a Kentucky bituminous coal showed fair correlations between conversion and the total concentration of the presumed reactive macerals (vitrinite, pseudovitrinite and sporinite). Similar concentrates from a Montana lignite showed no such correlation; the one sample that showed a high conversion was a high-density fraction that had a high mineral-matter content and in which nearly all the pyrite in the coal had accumulated. Two samples that have boghead and cannel characteristics gave quite different results on hydrogenation. Both were highly aliphatic in structure and had unusually high hydrogen contents and volatile matter. One, which contained appreciable proportions of sporinite, alginite and resinite, gave essentially no conversion to oil. The other, predominantly vitrinitic but containing alginite as the second most abundant maceral, gave an excellent yield of an oil of low viscosity and aromaticity. It was concluded that although rank, petrographic composition and perhaps geological history are important factors determining liquefaction behaviour, there are other characteristics of coals that may at times override these basic parameters, and the composition of the inorganic matter may be the most significant of these other characteristics.
Dependence of coal liquefaction behaviour on coal characteristics. 5. Data from a continuous flow reactorPeter H. Given, Ronald Schleppy and Ajay SoodDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa. 16802, USANovember 1979Abstract
A classification of coals in which conversion in batch reactors at 400 °C with tetralin (but no H2 gas) is one classifying parameter, is shown to be highly significant when the coals are hydrogenated in a 1 kg h−1 continuous flow reactor at 440 and 455 °C with 20.7 MPa of hydrogen. Regressions of the two sets of data against each other show variances explained of 86.5 and 88%, respectively. The yield of material distillable under standard conditions in a vacuum varies over the range 12–60% of dmmf coal.
Dependence of coal liquefaction behaviour on coal characteristics. 8. Aspects of the phenomenology of the liquefaction of some coalJohn S. Youtcheff and Peter H. Given
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa. 16802, USA
Presented at International Workshop on the ‘Science of Coal Liquefaction’, Lorne, Victoria, Australia, 24–28 May, 1982.
Abstract
Steps are now being taken to define in more detail the phenomenology of coal liquefaction and to provide a scientific basis for empirical correlations previously established between liquefaction conversion and basic compositional characteristics of coals. The rates of production of oils, asphaltenes and preaphaltenes have been determined at four temperatures for three coals, two of Carboniferous and one of Creaceousage. Products are formed more slowly from the younger coal (which is of slightly lower rank) than from the others, but oxygen, partly as OH but probably mostly in a type of ether, is lost more rapidly. It is estimated that the maximum content of O as cleavable ether is 7.7 atoms/100 C atoms for the younger coal (from Wyoming) and 4.1 and 5.1 for the other two (from Oklahoma and Ohio, respectively). Until ≈ 50% of the amount present in the Oklahoma coal is lost, the rates of removal of oxygen and organic sulphur are approximately equal; beyond this level, the removal of S is more rapid. The loss of organic sulphur from the Ohio coal is slightly faster. Even so, the data do not support the idea that cleavage of thioethers is more rapid than that of ethers and that this is the basic reason why a high organic sulphur content tends to promote liquefaction. Conversion of the pyrite in the Ohio coal to pyrrhotite occurs considerably more rapidly than the pyrite in the Oklahoma coal. In preliminary experiments, it is shown that a curve-resolving programme allows two aromatic and five aliphatic C-H stretching vibrations to be distinguished in FTIR spectra of the hexane-insoluble products, and the distribution changes with degree of conversion. In particular, there is evidence that new aryl methyl are generated during liquefaction, in agreement with evidence from oxidation studies.
Dependence of coal liquefaction behaviour on coal characteristics: 9. Liquefaction of a large set of high-sulphur coal samplesPaul H. Neill, Lawrence J. Shadle and the late Peter H. Given
College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
April 1988Abstract
Previous attempts to relate quantitatively coal liquefaction yields to properties considered only total yields of products and basic compositional data. This effort has now been renewed by the incorporation of analyses of liquefaction products and of coal structural characteristics. A set of 26 high volatile bituminous coals, with sulphur contents ranging from 2.8 to 7.9% and a mean mineral matter content of 15.3 ± 4.2% has been liquefied in tubing bombs with tetralin and hydrogen. There was a tendency for total conversion to decrease with increasing rank, but with much scatter. No marked trends of yields of asphaltene, oils or gas (directly measured) with rank or sulphur content were seen. The sum of the yields of these fractions and of the insoluble residue from the liquefaction was only 85–95%; it was shown that most of the missing material represented volatile coal products lost in the evaporation of the ethyl acetate extractant or in the vacuum distillation of naphthalene and excess tetralin.
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First, note the last word: "Tetralin", the hydrogen-donor solvent used by WVU in their direct coal liquefaction technology, "The West Virginia Process".
Like much other US coal liquefaction research we've reported to you, such as the University of Kentucky's "H-Coal" CTL pilot plant, all these efforts seem to have winked out in the late 1980's - early 1990's.
Why?
But, we urge you to follow up on this Penn State research, if Big Oil, through Gulf, hasn't already collected all the printed works and had a big bonfire somewhere. If that hasn't happened, it's far past time Big Oil did get his marshmallows toasted.
The technology that would enable us to convert our abundant domestic coal into needed liquid fuels exists; it is well-developed and well-understood. It would enable us to free ourselves from overseas oil power drains on our economy, and, through associated carbon dioxide recycling technologies, some of those patented by our own, US, Department of Defense, further enable us to establish an industrial basis of sustainability and environmental responsibility.
