In many previous reports, we've documented the participation of Pennsylvania's Air Products and Chemicals Company in the USDOE-sponsored International Coal Refining Company, ICR, and, in the operation, by ICR, of a pilot-scale Coal liquefaction facility in Allentown, PA.
Numerous US Patents related to Coal conversion technology arose from that effort, most of them assigned to ICR, with an included statement attesting to the US Government's part-ownership of the rights to the disclosed technology.
An example would be:
USDOE Funds Pennsylvania Coal Liquefaction | Research & Development; which concerns: "United States Patent 4,376,032 - Coal Liquefaction Desulfurization Process; 1983; Assignee: International Coal Refining Company, Allentown; (A) solvent refined coal liquefaction process. The Government of the United States of America has rights in this invention pursuant to Contract No. DE-AC05-780R03054 (as modified) awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy."
Subsequent to the Government-funded ICR project, Air Products and Chemicals Company has continued to develop Coal conversion technologies of their own, as witness, for one instance the recent:
Pennsylvania Uses Water to Convert Coal to Hydrocarbons | Research & Development, which details the United States Patent Application for their: "Process for Upgrading Coal Using Supercritical Water; Agents and Assignees: Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.; Allentown, PA; Abstract: Coal is converted into hydrocarbon compounds using supercritical water."
As it happens, Air Products was, even concurrent with, but independently of, their involvement in ICR, developing Coal liquefaction technologies, of their own, but again with USDOE support.
As witness excerpts from the initial link in this dispatch, with additional links, excerpts and comment appended:
"United States Patent 4,411,766 - Iron Catalyzed Coal Liquefaction Process
Date: October, 1983
Inventor: Diwakar Garg and Edwin Givens, PA
Assignee: Air Products & Chemicals, Incorporated, Allentown
Abstract: A process is described for the solvent refining of coal into a gas product, a liquid product and a normally solid dissolved product. Particulate coal and a unique co-catalyst system are suspended in a coal solvent and processed in a coal liquefaction reactor, preferably an ebullated bed reactor. The co-catalyst system comprises a combination of a stoichiometric excess of iron oxide and pyrite which reduce predominantly to active iron sulfide catalysts in the reaction zone. This catalyst system results in increased catalytic activity with attendant improved coal conversion and enhanced oil product distribution as well as reduced sulfide effluent. Iron oxide is used in a stoichiometric excess of that required to react with sulfur indigenous to the feed coal and that produced during reduction of the pyrite catalyst to iron sulfide.
The government of the United States of America has rights in this invention pursuant to Contract No. DE-AC22-79ET14806 awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy.
Claims: A process for the catalytic solvent refining of coal to generate liquid hydrocarbons, hydrocarbon gas and normally solid dissolved coal from the feed coal wherein particulate coal in a suspension of hydrogen donor coal solvent is reacted in a reducing atmosphere in the presence of a combination of co-catalysts of iron oxide and pyrite.
Background: Various processes have been developed for the solvent refining of coal. Much research has gone into processes for coal liquefaction, particularly when utilizing relatively expensive metal catalysts such as those including cobalt, molybdenum, nickel and tungsten. With the increasing costs of energy and the undesirable restraints on some energy sources, there has developed heightened interest in the recovery of energy stocks in the form of liquefiable fuels from coal resources known to exist in abundance in this and other countries.
Coal liquefaction processes using expensive catalysts such as those described above have been known for quite some time. Specifically, the Germans showed great activity in this area during the war years when an internal source of liquid fuels was important to that country. A similar importance to alternate liquid fuel sources now exists throughout the world.
The traditional use of expensive metal catalysts in coal liquefaction has several drawbacks. Not only are the metal catalysts expensive to provide for liquefaction processes in the first instance, but their expense dictates that additional expense is undertaken in order to provide catalyst regeneration apparatus to be used in conjunction with processes involving such catalysts.
In an attempt to overcome the problem of expensive coal liquefaction catalysts, persons skilled in this art have searched for inexpensive, potentially throw-away, catalysts which can be used in coal liquefaction processes without the need for additional apparatus necessary for regeneration. Pyrite, both as an added catalyst and as an in-situ ingredient of most coals, has been recognized as having some activity in the catalysis of coal in the liquefaction process.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a coal liquefaction process which uses an inexpensive co-catalyst system of iron oxide and pyrite.
It is a further object of the present invention to use the iron oxide in a stoichiometric excess of that needed to react with all sulfur available in-situ in the reaction of the liquefying coal.
It is yet another object of the present invention to eliminate hydrogen sulfide in the coal liquefaction effluent by the appropriate addition of iron oxide to fully react with such hydrogen sulfide.
It is another object of the present invention to increase the recovery of valuable oils from a coal liquefaction process by the use of a co-catalyst of iron oxide and iron sulfide in which the iron oxide is in a stoichiometric excess of that required to react with available sulfur.
It is a further object of the present invention to reduce the consumption of hydrogen in the coal liquefaction reaction.
Summary: The subject invention is directed to a coal liquefaction process utilizing a solvent refining technique with a low cost, expendable co-catalyst system. The process generates hydrocarbon gas, liquid hydrocarbons and normally solid dissolved coal from a feed coal wherein particulate coal in a suspension of hydrogen-donor solvent is reacted in a reaction zone having a reducing atmosphere of hydrogen gas in the presence of a combination of co-catalysts of iron oxide and pyrite in which the iron as iron oxide is in a stoichiometric excess of that needed to react with substantially all sulfur available in-situ in the reaction zone so as to produce additional iron sulfide catalysts, to eliminate substantially all of the hydrogen sulfide in the reactor effluent, to increase the quantity of oil in the product distribution and to reduce SRC sulfur, hydrocarbon gas production and hydrogen consumption.
Preferably, the solvent refining reaction is performed in an upflow ebullated bed reactor wherein the bed consists of particulate coal and the co-catalysts.
Additionally, the hydrogen-donor solvent may be regenerated in-situ by the presence of hydrogen gas in the reaction zone under high pressure."
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We note that some free Hydrogen gas is required in the Air Products technology, just as it is required in many conventional petroleum refineries to upgrade "heavy" crude petroleum. And, as we have documented, as in, for just one example:
Solar-Powered Hydrogen Generation | Research & Development | News; which concerns: "United States Patent 7,726,127 - Solar Power for Thermochemical Production of Hydrogen; 2010; Assignee: Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, Incorporated, CA; Abstract: A solar-powered hydrogen production system includes a thermochemical system and solar heating system. (Solar) energy can (also) be used to generate electricity that can be used to create hydrogen from water through electrolysis. (This) invention relates to a hydrogen production system powered by a renewable energy source.";
technologies are available which would allow us to use environmental "renewable energy" sources to generate the needed Hydrogen from Water.
Furthermore, Air Products was, at the same time, developing even more, perhaps supplemental, Coal liquefaction, technology, as witnessed by:
"United States Patent: 4486293 - Catalytic Coal Hydroliquefaction Process
Date: December, 1984
Inventor: Diwakar Garg, PA
Assignee: Air Products and Chemicals, Incorporated, Allentown
Abstract: A process is described for the liquefaction of coal in a hydrogen donor solvent in the presence of hydrogen and a co-catalyst combination of iron and a Group VI or Group VIII non-ferrous metal or compounds of the catalysts.
Government Interests: The Government of the United States of America has rights in this invention pursuant to Contract Number DE-AC22-79ET14806 awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy.
Claims: A process for the liquefaction of coal in an essentially hydrocarbon hydrogen donor solvent (and) wherein the solvent is recycled.
Description and Background: The present invention is directed to the liquefaction of coal using a hydrogen donor solvent in order to recover appreciable amounts of liquid fuels and solvent refined coal. More particularly, the invention is directed to catalysts which enhance the recovery of liquid fuels from coal in such a reaction.
The recovery of liquid fuels from coal is well documented in the prior art. Various methods for the recovery of liquid fuel from coal have been made ... .
In an attempt to overcome the problem of using expensive supported catalysts in coal liquefaction, the prior art has suggested the use of various inexpensive, potentially throw-away, catalysts which do not require regeneration for economic process operation. Various inexpensive catalysts for coal liquefaction are known, such as iron and its compounds.
Therefore, the present invention will be shown to provide a process for increasing the liquid fuel product of a coal liquefaction in a dramatic manner while reducing or maintaining the hydrocarbon gas production and the hydrogen consumption for such a process and thereby providing an economic scheme for the production of liquid fuels from coal. The present invention will be demonstrated to have a higher selectivity for oil than the processes generally known in the prior art, along with a greater coal conversion.
Summary: The subject coal liquefaction process can be used with various grades of coal, such as bituminous, subbituminous and lignite. These coals can be used directly or processed to remove mineral matter by known processes.
The process of the present invention is a catalytic coal liquefaction process in which solid coal is converted in unexpectedly high yields to liquid product or distillable oils."
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And, again: We the People, as per the two statements of "Government Interests", own at least a share of these technologies which would enable us to convert our abundant "solid coal" into "unexpectedly high yields" of such "liquid products" and "distillable oils".
Why have We the People not, yet, fully one quarter of a century after these United States Patents were issued, been privileged to even be told that we own such technologies, much less been afforded the opportunity to reduce them to practice; and, to thereby utilize our vast US Coal resources and more fully employ our skilled US Human resources, to free ourselves from crippling economic bondage and international political servitude to those conjoined twins of international economic ills, Big Oil and OPEC?