Predicting the Combustion Kinetics of Chinese Coals

Abstract

The database on the devolatilization of Chinese coals in the English literature represents coals from all ranks and the major Chinese mines. It was mostly acquired with TGAs. There are sufficient datasets from devices that imposed rapid heating rates to bracket combustor behavior. The domains of heating rate, temperature, pressure, and particle size are either directly relevant to combustion conditions, or close enough to manage with modest extrapolations. Whereas the data on ultimate total yields is sufficient to validate a model for any coal type, more detailed product distributions and char compositions would be desirable. Based on the accurate interpretation of this database, there are few unresolved issues surrounding the applicability of FLASHCHAIN® for combustion applications in China. The sub-database on devolatilization under rapid heating conditions represents 34 samples. The predicted yields were within the measurement uncertainties of 4 daf wt. % for 29 of these coals. Among the five ultimate yields that were not accurately predicted, three had measured values less than the proximate volatile matter (PVM), despite the rapid heating rates in the tests. Similarly, the sub-database on devolatilization under slow heating conditions characterizes ultimate devolatilization yields of 30 samples. The predicted yields were within the measurement uncertainties for 22 of these coals. Among the eight that were not accurately predicted, three had measured values that were much lower than the PVM (which is a problem even after accounting for the slow heating rates in the tests) and three were in studies that did not report ultimate analyses for the coals tested. Unfortunately, the database on the combustion behavior of the chars from Chinese coals is insufficient to specify char oxidation kinetics.