The term coal gasification refers to any process by which coal is converted into some gaseous form that can then be burned as a fuel. Coal gasification technology was relatively well known before World War II, but it fell out of favor after the war...

Coal is a naturally occurring combustible material consisting primarily of the element carbon, but with low percentages of solid, liquid, and gaseous hydrocarbons and other materials, such as compounds of nitrogen and sulfur. Coal is usually classified...

Scientists are unsure as to when it was discovered that coal could provide heat when burned; however, coal has probably been used as a fuel since prehistoric times. The ancient Chinese mined coal hundreds of years before the Christian era, and...

Consisting of altered remains of plants, coal is a widely used fossil fuel. Generally, the older the coal, the higher the carbon content and heating value. Anthracite coal ranks highest in carbon content, then bituminous coal, subbituminous coal, and...

Coal is a fossil fuel formed in swamp ecosystems where plant remains were saved by water and mud from oxidization and biodegradation. Coal is a readily combustible black or brownish-black rock. It is a sedimentary rock, but the harder forms, such as...

Unlike increases in previous years, US coal production declined by 2.1% from 1998, to 989 Mt (1.09 billion st) in 1999, according to preliminary data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) (Table 1). This decline marked the first decrease in coal production since a...

The statistics on coal production, consumption, exports and imports, and stocks from 1973 to Mar 1997 are presented. The total coal production in Mar 1997 was lower by 1% compared to the Mar 1996 production. Electric utility consumption in Jan 1997 was 6% higher...

Almost nonstop, gargantuan 145-ton trucks rumble through China's biggest open-pit coal mine, sending up clouds of soot as they dump their loads into mechanized sorters.The black treasure has transformed this once-isolated crossroads nestled in the sand-sculpted ravines of Inner Mongolia into a bleak boomtown of...

While the energy industry has been focused on alternative fuels and new sources of oil, the coal industry is going forward with plants to turn coal into liquid fuels such as diesel and gasoline.Supporters say at least some plans are a certainty, even if Congress...