Carbonization of Coal for Metallurgical Coke Production

Carbonization of coal is also known as coking of coal. The process consists of thermal
decomposition of coals either in the absence of air or in controlled atmosphere to
produce a carbonaceous residue known as coke.

Carbonization of coal can be carried out at the following three temperature

ranges.

• Low temperature carbonization is normally carried out in the temperature range of 500 deg C

to 700 deg C. In this type of carbonization, the yields of liquid products are higher and there

is lower gaseous product yield. The coke produced is having higher volatile matter and is

free burning.

• Medium temperature carbonization is done at temperature range of around 800 deg C. This

carbonization produces smokeless soft coke. By products produced are similar in

characteristics to high temperature carbonization. Medium temperature carbonization is

rarely practiced these days.

• High temperature carbonization is carried out at a temperature which is above 900 deg C.

This carbonization gives higher yield of gaseous products and lower yield of liquid products.

This carbonization produces hard coke and is normally employed for the production of

metallurgical coke from coking coals.

Process of carbonization of coal

✓ The coal to coke transformation takes place as the coal is heated. When the
state of fusing is reached, the layer of heated coal softens and fuses.
✓ From about 375 deg C to 475 deg C, the coal decomposes to form plastic
layer. Destructive distillation reactions proceed rapidly in the plastic layer with
evolution of volatile products.
✓ At about 475 deg C to 600 deg C, there is a marked evolution of tar, and
aromatic hydrocarbon compounds. The gas and condensable vapor are
entrapped in the plastic mass and, as they expand tend to swell it.
✓ As the reactions proceed and as the temperature of the fused zone increases,
the plasticity of the coal decreases.
✓ With continued heating and evolution of the gas, the fused layer gradually re-
solidifies into semi coke having typical, cellular coke structure. The coke at this
stage still contains substantial volatile matter.
✓ As the temperature increases further beyond 600 deg C, the destructive
distillation reaction continues with the evolution of gas and a little tar.
✓ The coke stabilization takes place as the temperature increases from 600 deg C
to 1100 deg C. This is characterized by contraction of coke mass, structural
development of coke and final hydrogen evolution.
✓ At this stage the final reactions take place. These reactions split off hydrogen
from extremely complex, high molecular weight hydro- carbons. With increasing
temperature, the coke mass shrinks with the development of shrinkage cracks.
The caking mechanism
✓ When the coking coals are carbonized, then first the plastic mass of optical
isotropic is formed, and thereafter gradually lamellar nematic liquid crystals are
formed. This polymeric phase is called mesophase.
✓ The polymeric “Mesophase” is the intermediate phase between the isotropic fluid
coal and the solid anisotropic semi coke ultimately formed from the mesophase,
and has properties which are intermediate between solids and liquids.
✓ If the fluidity of the intermediate phase is quite high, then mesophase coalesce
immediately into a single larger unit.
✓ Over a range of increasing temperature, mesophase is formed continuously,
grows in size and ultimately touches each other. Thus the mesophase can
solidify and convert from coking coal into optical anisotropic texture of coke.
Beehive ovens
✓ A beehive oven is a simple firebrick chamber built with an arched roof so that the
shape inside is that of an old-fashioned beehive. Its dimensions are typically 4 m
in width and 2.5 m in height. Beehive ovens are usually built in rows, one oven
beside another with common walls between neighboring ovens. Such a row of
 ovens is termed a battery. A battery usually consists of many ovens, sometimes
hundreds, in a row.

Typical cross section of a beehive oven

✓ The carbonization process gets started by means of the heat retained in the walls
of the oven from the previous charge of coal.
✓ Almost immediately after charging gas consisting of volatile matter is produced
from the coal.
✓ The air for combustion is admitted through an opening at the top of the oven door
or through side door.
✓ Start of carbonization produces volatile matter which is burnt inside the partially
closed side door. Carbonization proceeds from top to bottom.
✓ Heat is supplied by the burning volatile matter so no by-products are recovered.
The exhaust gases are allowed to escape to the atmosphere.
✓ The time of coking depends largely on the depth of the layer of coal, and ranges
from 48 to 72 hours. As coking proceeds, the volume of gas evolved decreases,
and the size of the opening in the door is correspondingly decreased or by
introducing bricks at the top opening. This regulates the quantity of air and
prevents the entrance of an excessive volume of air, which otherwise would burn
part of the coke and might be sufficient to cool the oven as well.
 ✓ The hot coke is quenched with water and discharged, manually through the side
door. When coking is complete, the door is opened and the white hot coke is
quenched by stream of water directed through the opening. The quenched coke
is then raked from the oven manually and loaded into train cars for transport. The
walls and roof retain enough heat to initiate carbonization of the next charge.

✓ When coal is burned in a coke oven, the impurities of the coal not already driven
off as gases accumulated to form slag, which is effectively a conglomeration of
the removed impurities. Since it is not the desired coke product, slag is either
discarded or being used as an ingredient in brick-making, mixed cement, and
even as a fertilizer.

New ovens are brought up to temperature by heating with coal or wood before charging.

Beehive coking is now an obsolete process because of the small quantity it

manufactured and the very large amount of pollution it produced. However it is still
being used.

Coal Gasification and Liquefaction

India aims for 100 million tonnes (MT) coal gasification by 2030 with
investments worth over Rs. 4 lakh crores.

For encouraging use of clean sources of fuel, the government has provided
for a concession of 20% on revenue share of coal used for gasification.

This will boost production of synthetic natural gas, energy fuel, urea for
fertilizers and production of other chemicals.

Coal Gasification

❖ It is the process of producing syngas, a mixture consisting of carbon

monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2), carbon dioxide (CO2), natural gas
(CH4), and water vapor (H2O).
❖ During gasification, coal is blown with oxygen and steam while also
being heated under high pressure.
 ❖ During the reaction, oxygen and water molecules oxidize the coal and
produce syngas.
❖ Transporting gas is a lot cheaper than transporting coal.
❖ Help address local pollution problems.
❖ Has greater efficiency than conventional coal-burning because it can
effectively use the gases twice: the coal gases are first cleansed of
impurities and fired in a turbine to generate electricity.
❖ The exhaust heat from the gas turbine can be captured and used to
generate steam for a steam turbine-generator.

Fig. Flow chart of a typical coal gasification plant

Coal Liquefaction

❖ It is an alternative route to produce diesel and gasoline and makes

economic sense only in a world of high crude oil prices. Also called
Coal to Liquid (CTL) technology.
❖ The process involves gasification of coal, which in turn will produce
synthetic gas (a mix of CO+H2).
❖ The synthetic gas can be liquefied to its fuel equivalent in presence of
cobalt/iron-based catalysts at higher pressure and temperature.
❖ However, liquefied coal emits twice as much CO 2 as burning oil. It
also emits a large volume of SO2.
❖ The CO2 emissions are more readily and cheaply captured from CTL
plants than from conventional coal-fired power stations.
❖ The captured CO2 can be transported and injected into underground
storage reservoirs (a procedure known as “carbon capture and
storage”—CCS—or “geo-sequestration”).
 What are nematic liquid crystals???

❖ A nematic liquid crystal is a transparent or translucent liquid that causes

the polarization (that is, the focusing in a plane) of light waves to change,
as the waves pass through the liquid.

❖ The extent of the change in polarization depends on the intensity of an

applied electric field. Nematic comes from a Greek
prefix ‘nemato’ meaning threadlike and is used here because the
molecules in the liquid align themselves into a threadlike shape. Nematic
liquid crystals are used in twisted nematic displays, the most common
form of liquid crystal display.

❖ A typical nematic liquid crystal produces a 90-degree shift in the

polarization of the light passing through when there is no electric field
present. When a voltage is applied, an electric field is produced in the
liquid, affecting the orientation of the molecule s. This causes the
polarization shift to be reduced. The effect is slight at low voltages, and
increases as the voltage (and the resulting field strength) increases.
When the applied voltage reaches a certain level, the polarization shift
disappears entirely.