The prospects of burning coal and oil processing waste in slurry, gel, and solid state

Abstract

This paper presents the experimental investigation results of ignition and combustion characteristics of fuels based on typical coal flotation waste which is formed and accumulated around the world in large volumes (about 200–300 million tons per year). We focus on the comparison of these characteristics for waste-derived fuels in different states: slurry, gel, and solid. We analyze the ignition delay times, minimum (threshold) ignition temperatures, combustion heat, concentrations of anthropogenic emissions, and the relative efficiency of fuels. We have determined that minimum ignition temperatures and shorter ignition delay times are achieved in the solid state (50–80% lower than in the slurry and gel state). The lowest concentrations of the most hazardous emissions are present in the liquid (slurry) state (NOx and SOx are 18–75% lower than from the combustion of coal in the solid state). The conditions were identified for the efficient use of coal and oil processing waste as part of composite fuels. The relative fuel effective utilization factor of waste-derived fuel mixtures in different states ranged from 0.11 to 45.5. It is maximal for fuels in the slurry state. The obtained data has been compared with the results of other studies.