As with many of Big Oil's published technical documents, including US Patents, wherein the topic is the conversion of Coal into liquid hydrocarbon fuels, they quite obviously prefer to avoid use of that four-letter indiscretion, in as much as is possible. Typically, they employ fig leaf phrases like "Fischer-Tropsch" and "carbonaceous solids" to hide the naughty bits from the uninformed.
That is true of this United States Patent awarded to Mobil Oil in 1977, as well, wherein, in confirmation of other documentation we have earlier and separately provided you, including from our own US Department of Defense, it is revealed that Coal can be utilized to manufacture a, relative to petroleum-based competitors, high-performance jet fuel.
"Coal" is named only once in the full Disclosure, but it's synonymous relationship to "Fischer-Tropsch" is cemented in this advance passage taken from our more complete excerpts:
"In recent times, there has been a renewed interest in the production of hydrocarbon products from coal. One such technique utilizes the known Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis process ... . It is ... an object of this invention to provide a process for upgrading a Fischer-Tropsch product ... to produce quality distillate products including a high quality jet fuel."
So, really, this US Patent is more about refining hydrocarbon liquids made from Coal, and tweaking the nearly century-old Fischer-Tropsch Coal conversion process, to produce a more specific liquid fuel product, than it is about actually making hydrocarbon liquids from Coal.
In pursuit of that goal, it confirms by implication that, yes, of course, we can make liquid hydrocarbon fuels from Coal.
Brief further comment follows more extended excerpts from:
"United States Patent 4,044,064 - Conversion of Fischer-Tropsch Heavy Product to High Quality Jet Fuel
Date: August, 1977
Inventor: Donald Milstein, et. al., NJ
Assignee: Mobil Oil Corporation, NY
Abstract: Upgrading a fraction of a heavy Fischer-Tropsch oil to jet fuel by hydropretreating a 350 to 850 F boiling fraction; separating the hydrotreated product into a 650 F minus and a 650 F plus fraction, separating the 650 F minus fraction to provide a 350 F minus naphtha boiling range fraction and a 350 to 650 F light distillate fraction; distilling the 350 to 650 F hydrotreated fraction to provide a fraction boiling in the range of 350 F to 550 F separate from a 550 to 650 F fraction processing either of the 650 F plus fraction above separated or the 350 to 550 F boiling fraction above obtained over a catalyst comprising a crystalline aluminosilicate zeolite having a silica to alumina ratio of at least 12 and a constraint index of 1 to 12 with hydrogen, at a temperature of about 500 to 800 F ... to produce ... as a product of the process a reduced pour point diesel oil fraction, a 350 to 550 F jet fuel fraction, and a 350 F minus naphtha product fraction.
Claims: A process of producing high quality gasoline and higher boiling products ... .
Description: This invention relates to the upgrading of synthetic hydrocarbon streams. It more particularly refers to a method and process arrangement for upgrading a synthetic fraction of Fischer-Tropsch synthesis comprising hydrocarbons and oxygenates boiling above about 350 F into a product slate including high quality jet fuel.
It is known that jet fuel must have a rather low freeze point because it must be a pumpable fluid at high altitudes where the low temperatures are almost always encountered. ... It has also been proposed to adjust the pour point, cloud point and/or freeze point of a hydrocarbon distillate fraction ... by selective catalytic conversion of the feed.
One such catalytic conversion utilizes catalysts comprising ZSM-5 and/or similarly behaving crystalline aluminosilicate zeolites.
In recent times, there has been a renewed interest in the production of hydrocarbon products from coal. One such technique utilizes the known Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis process for converting synthesis gas (CO and H2) to a hydrocarbon product varying considerably in boiling range and comprising oxygenates and waxy material boiling above about 650 F that does not contain the sulfur, nitrogen or metal impurities often found in crude oil."
It is known that jet fuel must have a rather low freeze point because it must be a pumpable fluid at high altitudes where the low temperatures are almost always encountered. ... It has also been proposed to adjust the pour point, cloud point and/or freeze point of a hydrocarbon distillate fraction ... by selective catalytic conversion of the feed.
One such catalytic conversion utilizes catalysts comprising ZSM-5 and/or similarly behaving crystalline aluminosilicate zeolites.
In recent times, there has been a renewed interest in the production of hydrocarbon products from coal. One such technique utilizes the known Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis process for converting synthesis gas (CO and H2) to a hydrocarbon product varying considerably in boiling range and comprising oxygenates and waxy material boiling above about 650 F that does not contain the sulfur, nitrogen or metal impurities often found in crude oil."