http://www.osti.gov/accomplishments/documents/fullText/ACC0358.pdf
Since we are, today, via separate dispatch concerningUnited States Patent Application: 0060235091; for the "Efficient and Selective Conversion of Carbon Dioxide to Methanol", as disclosed by the University of Southern California's Nobel Laureate, George Olah, and his USC colleague, Surya Prakash, we wanted, herein, to document that the carbon fuel conversion expertise resident at USC has been recognized, as well, by other branches of our United States Government.
Herein, we learn that our US Department of Energy engaged the services of George Olah and USC to help them develop a better way to convert Coal into liquid hydrocarbons.
There will, we acknowledge, be some redundancies inherent in this report, since it centers on Olah's development of "superacid" catalysis technology, which we have previously, at least to some small extent, documented for you.
Comment follows highly abbreviated, due to dense technical content, excerpts from the link to:
"Superacid Catalyzed Coal Conversion Chemistry; Final Technical Report
USDOE Contract Number: DE-FG22-83PC60810
Date: September, 1986
Author: George Olah; Organization: University of Southern California
The basis of our studies was a novel, low temperature, mild coal conversion process developed in our laboratory. It involves the use of a superacidic system consisting of HF and BF, in the presence of hydrogen and/or a hydrogen donor solvent.
Significance to Fossil Energy Program: Our research project, involved the study of a raw comparatively mild coal conversion process.
The goal of the project was to study model systems to understand the basic chemistry involved and to provide a possible effective pretreatment of coal which significantly improves liquefaction-depolymerization under mild conditions.
The conversion process operates at relatively low temperatures ... and pressures and uses an easily recyclable, stable superacid catalyst. It consequently offers an attractive alternative to currently available processes.
From the present studies it appears that the modification of coal structure by electrophilic alkylation and subsequent reaction of alkylated coal with HF-BF system under mild conditions considerably improves the extractability of coal."
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First of all, we acknowledge that "HF" - i.e., Hydrogen Fluoride - though probably not too difficult, or expensive, to make, would be difficult to handle.
Our understanding is that it is so acidic that it will etch glass.
And, handling or processing difficulties aside, "BF" - i.e., Boron Fluoride - is somewhat toxic; and, it is typically made, in any case, according to readily-available web-based references, by reacting the mineral Borax with Hydrogen Fluoride.
Both substances, though, do have some current industrial uses and are being commercially manufactured, on at least a limited scale.
Further, in Olah's Coal conversion process, they are "easily recyclable".
And, the advantage, the trade-off, in using potentially-hazardous materials like HF and BF in this Coal liquefaction process, is that such use enables Coal conversion, into liquid hydrocarbons, to proceed "at relatively low temperatures ... and pressures", and, through such implied reduction in the energy needed to effect the conversion, "offers an attractive alternative to currently available processes" for such Coal liquefaction.
In any case, as documented herein, our United States Department of Energy, one quarter of a century ago, used our tax money to hire a university all the way out in California to improve a process for the conversion of Coal into liquid hydrocarbons.
We, of course, back East, in the heart of US Coal Country, haven't yet heard anything about it.
Our supposition is that the wagon train they put the report in - - to be carried back and, in the fullness of time, delivered to where it's information could actually be utilized - - succumbed to the rigors of crossing Death Valley - which, coincidentally, is where the Borax, needed to make the Boron Fluoride that, as above, serves to help liquefy Coal, would, in the US, be mined.