The Use of Coal Gases as an Alternative Fuel for Energy Supply

Year 2017, Issue: 3, 58 - 63, 01.05.2017

Mustafa İlbaş

Abstract

Coal gasification is a process to produce syngas fuels. Syngas is a mixture mainly consisting of carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2), carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and water vapor (H2O). Historically, coal was gasified using early technology to produce coal gas (also known as “town gas”), which is a combustible gas traditionally used for municipal lighting and heating before the advent of industrial-scale production of natural gas.

Natural gas is replaced by synthetic fuels, which are generally produced by gasification process, due to depletion of fossil fuels including natural gas resources. If synthetic fuel is produced by an air-blown gasification process, it is called as low calorific value syngas and may be used mostly in IGCC (Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle). Air is directly blown over the coal in a gasification reactor resulting in the production of the syngas that is composed chiefly of high amounts of nitrogen and carbon monoxide as well as a smaller amount of hydrogen as a combustible gas.

Alternatively, coal-derived syngas can also be converted into transportation fuels such as gasoline and diesel through additional treatment via the Fischer-Tropsch process or into methanol which itself can be used as transportation fuel or fuel additive, or which can be converted into gasoline by the methanol to gasoline process.

Keywords

Coal gases, alternative fuel for energy, energy supply

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