We've previously cited references documenting Gulf Oil's research and development of coal liquefaction technologies, and of the USDOE's Tacoma, Washington, SRC coal liquefaction pilot plant.
Herein, it's presented that there was further, likely negative, involvement of Big Oil in the nearly top-secret USDOE program to develop technologies for coal liquefaction, which followed by some decades the CTL effort immediately-post WWII, using captured German technology, in which several US coal liquefaction facilities were built.
As follows:
"Desulfurization and Deashing of Solvent Refined Coal (SRC-I)
Authors: L. Petrakis, P.F. Ahner, F.E. Kiviat
Affiliation: Gulf Research and Development Company; Pittsburgh, PA
Publication: Separation Science and Technology; Volume 16, Issue 7, August, 1981. pp 745 - 772.
Abstract:
A pilot-scale high gradient magnetic separations (HGMS) system was assembled to investigate the magnetic separation of ash-forming solids and inorganic sulfur from liquefied coal. The liquefied coal studied was a diluted intermediate product obtained from the DOE-sponsored Tacoma SRC-I pilot plant (50 t/d coal capacity). The magnetic characteristics and particle size distribution of the Tacoma SRC-I liquefied coal were optimized for removal by HGMS. The effect of the following magnetic separator parameters upon the deashing the desulfurization of the diluted liquefied coal was considered: matrix packing density, temperature, applied magnetic field, dilution of and residence time of liquefied coal feed, backflushing of saturated separator parameters upon the deashing and desulfurization of the diluted liquefied model which satisfactorily accounts for HGMS performance was developed. The HGMS system was observed to remove over 90% of the ash-forming materials and inorganic sulfur over a wide range of operating conditions. These removals were increased to 97 and 95%, respectively, with residence times greater than 6 min."
Maybe not too exciting. But, an oil company was refining coal liquids. And, they were able to remove more than ninety percent of objectionable materials by using a technology that sounds somewhat surprisingly sophisticated, given that no one seemed, or seems, to know we were making coal liquids in the first place, much less figuring out how to refine them.
The thing we find most intriguing, to belabor a theme: Gulf refined coal liquids, in Pittsburgh, PA, which were made in Tacoma, WA, from coal mined, as per some previous references we've provided about the Tacoma SRC operation, in Kentucky.
We can, without argument, make gasoline from coal. However, our USDOE has wasted more gasoline than we ever have made from coal by playing a coast-to-coast shell game, shuttling coal and coal liquids back and forth, in their attempt to hide that fact.
Way past time the Bunco Squad kicked over Big Oil's game table, ain't it?