New Progress on the Coal Fines Affecting the Development of Coalbed Methane

Objective The production of coal fines is very common in the development of coalbed methane（CBM）in the eastern margin of the Ordos Basin,China.A large amount of produced coal fines seriously affect the productivity of CBM wells（Wei Yingchun et al.,2013）.Therefore,the production problems of CBM wells caused by coal fines have attracted extensive attention.

AN INVESTIGATION OF THE HYDROPHOBIC AGGLOMERATION CHARACTERISTICS OF EASY DEGRADATION COAL FINES IN WATER

The separation of ultrafine coal from three Chinese coal samples of easy degradation coal fines in water has been investigated by the application of a hydrophobic agglomeration process. In addition to yielding clean coal with high recovery, this process requires significantly less oil concentration for agglomeration (less than 0.4% in oil-water weight ratio) and produces stabler agglomerates than general oil agglomeration process, the cost of the oil would no longer be an important consideration for its commercial application. Neutral diesel oil was used to make oleophilic coal particles agglomerated with good rejection of clay minerals under little oil consumption and certain agitation speed at 2000 r/min. An important advantage of this process compared with other cleaning fine coal methods is that it can extremely reduce or eliminate the effects of coal degradation and some clay minerals on coal preparation.

Structural properties of residual carbon in coal gasification fine slag and their influence on flotation separation and resource utilization:A review

Coal gasification fine slag(FS)is a typical solid waste generated in coal gasification.Its current disposal methods of stockpil-ing and landfilling have caused serious soil and ecological hazards.Separation recovery and the high-value utilization of residual carbon(RC)in FS are the keys to realizing the win-win situation of the coal chemical industry in terms of economic and environmental benefits.The structural properties,such as pore,surface functional group,and microcrystalline structures,of RC in FS(FS-RC)not only affect the flotation recovery efficiency of FS-RC but also form the basis for the high-value utilization of FS-RC.In this paper,the characteristics of FS-RC in terms of pore structure,surface functional groups,and microcrystalline structure are sorted out in accordance with gasification type and FS particle size.The reasons for the formation of the special structural properties of FS-RC are analyzed,and their influence on the flotation separation and high-value utilization of FS-RC is summarized.Separation methods based on the pore structural characterist-ics of FS-RC,such as ultrasonic pretreatment-pore-blocking flotation and pore breaking-flocculation flotation,are proposed to be the key development technologies for improving FS-RC recovery in the future.The design of low-cost,low-dose collectors containing polar bonds based on the surface and microcrystalline structures of FS-RC is proposed to be an important breakthrough point for strengthening the flotation efficiency of FS-RC in the future.The high-value utilization of FS should be based on the physicochemical structural proper-ties of FS-RC and should focus on the environmental impact of hazardous elements and the recyclability of chemical waste liquid to es-tablish an environmentally friendly utilization method.This review is of great theoretical importance for the comprehensive understand-ing of the unique structural properties of FS-RC,the breakthrough of the technological bottleneck in the efficient flotation separation of FS,and the expansion of the field of the high value-added utilization of FS-RC.

Effective separation of coal gasification fine slag: Role of classification and ultrasonication in enhancing flotation

Effective separation of residual carbon and ash is the basis for the resource utilization of coal gasification fine slag(CGFS).The conventional flotation process of CGFS has the bottlenecks of low carbon recovery and high collector dosage.In order to address these issues,CGFS sample taken from Shaanxi,China was used as the study object in this paper.A new process of size classification-fine grain ultrasonic pretreatment flotation(SC-FGUF)was proposed and its separation effect was compared with that of wholegrain flotation(WGF)as well as size classification-fine grain flotation(SC-FGF).The mechanism of its enhanced separation effect was revealed through flotation kinetic fitting,flotation flow foam layer stability,particle size composition,surface morphology,pore structure,and surface chemical property analysis.The results showed that compared with WGF,pre-classification could reduce the collector dosage by 84.09%and the combination of pre-classification and ultrasonic pretreatment could increase the combustible recovery by 17.29%and up to 93.46%.The SC-FGUF process allows the ineffective adsorption of coarse residual carbon to collector during flotation stage to be reduced by pre-classification,and the tightly embedded state of fine CGFS particles is disrupted and surface oxidizing functional group occupancy was reduced by ultrasonic pretreatment,thus carbon and ash is easier to be separated in the flotation process.In addition,some of the residual carbon particles were broken down to smaller sizes in the ultrasonic pretreatment,which led to an increase in the stability of flotation flow foam layer and a decrease in the probability of detachment of residual carbon particles from the bubbles.Therefore,SCFGUF could increase the residual carbon recovery and reduce the flotation collector dosage,which is an innovative method for carbon-ash separation of CGFS with good application prospect.

Carburization of ferrochromium metals in chromium ore fines containing coal during voluminal reduction by microwave heating

Chromium ore fines containing coal (COFCC) can be rapidly heated by microwave to conduct the voluminal reduction, which lays a foundation of getting sponge ferrochromium powders with a lower content of C. Under the conditions of COFCC with n(O)-n(C) (molar ratio) as 1.00-0.84 and n(SiO2)-n(CaO) as 1.00-0.39, the samples were heated by 10 kW microwave power to reach the given temperatures and held for different times respectively. The results show that the low-C-Cr ferrochromium metal phase in the reduced materials forms before the high-C-Cr ferrochromium metal phase does. With increasing temperature the C content of ferrochromium metals is in a positive correlation with the content of Cr. The C content of ferrochromium metal in reduced materials is 0-10.07% with an average value of 4.68%. With the increase of holding time the Cr content in ferrochromium metals is in a negative correlation with the content of C, while the content of Fe changes in the contrary way. In the microwave field the kinetic conditions of carburization are closely related with the temperature of microwave heating, holding time and carbon fitting ratio.

Coal waste management practices in the USA:an overview

This paper provides an overview of coal waste management practices with two case studies and an estimate of management cost in 2010 US dollars.Processing of as-mined coal typically results in considerable amount of coarse and fine coal processing wastes because of in-seam and out-of-seam dilution mining.Processing plant clean coal recovery values run typically 50%-80%.Trace metals and sulfur may be present in waste materials that may result in leachate water with corrosive characteristics.Water discharges may require special measures such as liner and collection systems,and treatment to neutralize acid drainage and/or water quality for trace elements.The potential for variations in coal waste production and quality depends upon mining or processing,plus the long-term methods of waste placement.The changes in waste generation rates and engineering properties of the coal waste during the life of the facility must be considered.Safe,economical and environmentally acceptable management of coal waste involves consideration of geology,soil and rock mechanics,hydrology,hydraulics,geochemistry,soil science,agronomy and environmental sciences.These support all aspects of the regulatory environment including the design and construction of earth and rock embankments and dams,as well as a wide variety of waste disposal structures.Development of impoundments is critical and require considerations of typical water-impounding dams and additional requirements of coal waste disposal impoundments.The primary purpose of a coal waste disposal facility is to dispose of unusable waste materials from mining.However,at some sites coal waste impoundments serve to provide water storage capacity for processing and flood attenuation.

Experimental Research on Desulfurization of Fine Coal Using an Enhanced Centrifugal Gravity Separator

A desulphurization experimental study under the effects of compounding physical force fields has been described for 〈 0.5 mm fine particles of high sulfur coal. A statistical test using the Box-Behnken Design of experiments was conducted to evaluate the effects of individual operating variables and their interactions on desulfurization of fine coal using an enhanced centrifugal gravity separator. A model describing the relation between desulphurization efficiency of pyrite sulfur and different operating variables has been designed. The interactions between different factors on the pyrite sulfur desulphurization efficiency have been analysed. The optimal test conditions for desulfarization are extracted from the Design-Expert 6.0 software. Finally, the pointed out. advantage of centrifugal gravity separation for fine coal is pointed out.

An Entrapment Model of Water Flow on Fine Coal Flotation

Effect of entrapment of water flow on fine coal flotation was studied. The relation between constant of water flotation rate and flotation time was investigated and the water recycling model determined. The entrapment model of water flow about the relation between the recovery of fine particle and that of water in concentration was established. Finally, the equation about ash in fine clean coal at any time was derived by introducing a de-ashing coefficient.

Effect of a starch-based filter aid on the dewatering of fine clean coal

The dewatering of fine, flotation cleaned coals from Huaibei and Xuzhou (bituminous) and Yongcheng (anthracite) were studied. The supernatant and filter cake were examined to determine the rate and extent of flocculation and dewatering. A starch-based filter aid was used to increase flocculation and dewatering rates. The filtration constant, K, and compression index, s, of the Yongcheng slurry were measured under various conditions. A designed experiment was performed to determine optimum conditions for dewatering. The results showed that the filter aid enhanced flocculation and coagulation of the fine cleaned coal slurry, enhanced the structure of the filter cake and promoted dewatering of the cake. Moisture content in the cake was reduced to 17% after vacuum filtration.

Dissolution kinetics of aluminum and iron from coal mining waste by hydrochloric acid

The extrartion of aluminum from coal mining waste(CMW) is an important industrial process.The two major problems in applications are low aluminum dissolution efficiency and high iron content in the raw material,which affect the quantity and quality of products.To improve the aluminum recovery process,the leaching kinetics of CMW with hydrochloric acid was studied.A shrinking core model was used to investigate aluminum and iron dissolution kinetics.Based on the kinetic characteristics,a process for recovering aluminum was proposed and tested experimentally.It is found that the aluminum leaching reaction is controlled by surface reaction at low temperatures(40-80℃) and by diffusion process at higher temperatures(90-106℃).The iron dissolution process is dominated by surface reaction at 40-100℃.The results show that iron could be dissolved or separated by concentrated hydrochloric acid.Fine grinding will improve aluminum dissolution significantly.

Triboelectrostatic Separation-an Efficient Method of Producing Low Ash Clean Coal

At present, coal is mainly consumed as fuel. In fact, coal is also a kind of precious raw material in chemical industry on the premise that some harmful minerals should be removed from coal. The paper presents the results of the research on producing low ash (<2%) coal with triboelectrostatic separator used for producing high-grade active carbon. The test is conducted in bench-scale system, whose capacity is 30～100 kg/h. The results indicate that: 1) the ash content of clean coal increases with the increase of solid content of feedstock, on the contrary, the yield of clean coal is declining; 2) a high velocity may result in a good separation efficiency; 3) for the same solid content, the reunion caused by intermolecular force makes the separation efficiency drop down when the ultra-fine coal is separated; 4) the separation efficiency is improved with the increase of electric field intensity, but there is a good optimized match between the electric field intensity and yield of clean coal; 5) a low rank coal is easy-to-wash in triboelectrostatic separation process; 6) the yield of clean coal can be enhanced and the ash decreased through adapting optimized conditions according to various coals.

Pico–nano bubble column flotation using static mixer-venturi tube for Pittsburgh No.8 coal seam

The flotation process is a particle-hydrophobic surface-based separation technique. To improve the essential flotation steps of collision and attachment probabilities, and reduce the step of detachment probabilities between air bubbles and hydrophobic particles, a selectively designed cavitation venturi tube combined with a static mixer can be used to generate very high numbers of pico and nano bubbles in a flotation column. Fully embraced by those high numbers of tiny bubbles, hydrophobic particles readily attract the tiny bubbles to their surfaces. The results of column flotation of Pittsburgh No. 8 seam coal are obtained in a 5.08 cm ID and 162 cm height flotation column equipped with a static mixer and cavitation venturi tube, using kerosene as collector and MIBC as frother. Design of the experimental procedure is combined with a statistical two-stepwise analysis to determine the optimal operating conditions for maximum recovery at a specified grade. The effect of independent variables on the responses has been explained. Combustible material recovery of 85–90% at clean coal product of 10–11% ash is obtained from feed of 29.6% ash, with a much-reduced amount of frother and collector than that used in conventional column flotation. The column flotation process utilizing pico and nano bubbles can also be extended to the lower limit and upper limit of particle size ranges, minus 75 lm and 300–600 lm, respectively, for better recovery.

Physical properties and filter cake structure of fine clean coal from flotation

In order to improve the dewatering rate and the effect of fine clean coal(FCC), the advanced method offine coal( 0.5 mm) dewatering and the correlated basic theory were investigated in this study. It was found that the dewatering by sleeve type press filter was an efficient way of FCC dewatering. On the other hand, the results also proved that particle size distribution, volatile matter, ash content, pore size distribution and specific surface area of coal particles of FCC samples, as well as viscosity and density of FCC slurry, were important parameters in determining the process of efficient dewatering. Especially, wet mass to dry mass, specific resistance of average mass, compressibility factor and microstructure of filter cake explained the reasons and mechanisms of fine clean coal efficient dewatering.

Surface Modification Mechanism of Fine Coal by Electrochemical Methods

In order to reveal the surface modification mechanism of fine coal by electrochemical methods, the structural changes of the coal surface before and after electrochemical modification were investigated by Fourier Transform In- frared Spectra (FTIR) and Raman Spectra. The results show that under certain electrochemical conditions, the oxy- gen-containing functional group in the coal structure and the oxygen content of absorption could be reduced and the floatability of coal improved. At the same time, the sulfur in the coal was reduced to the hydrophilic S2– which could be separated easily from coal. Thus electrochemical modification methods could be used to change the structure and func- tional group on the coal surface and to enhance the floatability of coal.

THE STUDY OF THE BASIC THEORY AND THE APPLICATION OF REMOVAL PYRITE AND ASH FROM FINE COAL WITH ELECTROSTATIC SEPARATOR

The effect of removing pyrite and ash ffom fine coal with electrostatic separator is determined by the electric property of coal, the distribution of corona ion and etectrostatic field, and the disperse and even feed. The dielectric constant of coal and mineral matter is studied in this paper and the amendment has been made to survey theory. The oscillogram is adopted to study the distribution of corona ion and electrostatic field.The paper details the study of remoing pyrite and ash from fine coal, and the test results demonstrate the high efficiency of removing pyrite and ash with electrostatic separator.

Cake forming and filtering time in the spiral discharging fine coal filtering centrifuge

Based on the realization of moving-bed cake filtering, the concepts of static-bed filtering time and moving-bed fil- tering time in the helical-conveyor fine coal filtering centrifuge were proposed, and the mathematic relations between the time defined and the main factors related were studied in detail. The results show that the static-bed filtering time is the function of the spiral heads and the rotation rate deference between the spiral and the porous drum, while the moving-bed filtering time is the function of the cone angle of the porous drum, the radius of the porous drum, the spiral angle, and the rotation rate deference. The functions deduced are of great significance for fine coal filtering centrifuge＇s parameters determining and optimizing. It is shown that the filtering centrifuge with smaller spiral angle, smaller rotation rate deference, and smaller cone angle may do a better job for fine coal dewatering.

Ash Depression in Fine Coal Flotation Using a Novel Polymer Aid

The current study investigated the effects of novel hybrid polyacrylamide polymers as ash (slime) depressants in fine coal flotation to enhance combustible recovery and ash rejection. Coal samples at P80 of approximately 45 um with ~25% ash content were floated in the presence of in-house synthesized hybrid aluminum hydroxide polyacrylamide polymers (Al(OH)3-PAM, or Al-PAM). All flotation experiments were carried out in a 5-L Denver flotation cell. Various influencing factors were examined to optimize the flotation process in the presence of the Al-PAM polymers, including the Al-PAM dosage, Al-PAM conditioning time, impeller rotation speed and pulp pH. Comparative and synergistic studies were also performed using organic polyacrylamide polymers (PAMs), commercial dispersants and Al-PAM/dispersant system. Results showed a significant improvement in both combustible recovery and ash rejection at an Al-PAM dosage of 0.25 mg/L. The maximum combustible recovery obtained, at natural pH, with Al-PAM and Al-PAM/dispersant system was determined to be 70% and 66% at ash content of 7.74% and 7.4%, respectively. Zeta potential values of both the raw coal and concentrate products showed a large shift toward more positive values (from ˉ50 mV to ˉ13 mV), indicating a significant decrease in ash-forming minerals (slimes) when Al-PAM polymers were applied.

FLOTATION RATE CONSTANT MODE FOR FINE COAL

The density of fine coal has a major effect on the value of its flotation rate constant. The collector dose can increase the flotation rate of fine coal, especially for low ash coal, but the effect for gangue is not notable. The flotation rate of gangue is mainly governed by the water entrainment. A coal flotation rate constant model has been developed.

Microstructure of Solid Phase Reduction on Manganese Oxide Ore Fines Containing Coal by Microwave Heating

Microstructure of solid phase reduction on manganese oxide ore fines containing coal （MOOFCC） is one of important kinetics conditions of influencing microwave heating. On condition thai an atomic molar ratio of ro ： rc in MOOFCC is 1 ： 1.06 as well as a molecular molar ratio of rSiO2： rCaO is 1 ： 1.28, 1 kg of MOOFCC is heated by microwave to reach 1 000-1 300℃ and hold different time respectively. Experiments show that the metal phase takes the iron-based metal compounds containing manganese as the main content. The manganese content of metal phase increases with the xise of temperature. The particle size of the metal phase is within the range from 0. 01 to 0.05 mm. MO2 phase in the stuff is entirely changed into MnO phase and the slag phase is mainly composed of wollastonite and manganese olivine. The stuff reduced is loose and massive as a whole and its porosity is from 30% to 45%. The low softening-melting property and the low density of the stuff impact, to some degree, the solid phase reduction of powder by microwave heating.

Effect of bubbles addition on teetered bed separation

To improve the separation efficiency of a conventional Teetered Bed Separator(TBS) in beneficiation of fine coal with a wide size range,an Aeration TBS(A-TBS) was proposed in this investigation.The bubbles were introduced to A-TBS by a self-priming micro-bubble generator.This study theoretically analyzed the effect of bubbles on the difference in hindered settling terminal velocity between different density particles,investigated the impact of superficial water velocity(V_(SW)) and superficial gas velocity(V_(Sg)) on bed fluidization,and compared the performance of the TBS and A-TBS in treating 1-0.25 mm size fraction particles.The results show that the expansion degree of fluidized bed which was formed by different size particles or has different initial height,is increased by the introduction of bubbles.Compared with the TBS,at the same level of clean coal ash content,the A-TBS shows an increase in the combustible recovery of clean coal,ash content of tailings,and practical separation density by 5.26%,6.56%,and 0.088 g/cm3 respectively,while it shows a decrease in the probable error(E_p) and V_(SW) by 0.031 and 3.51 mm/s,respectively.The addition of bubbles at a proper amount not only improves the separation performance of TBS,but also reduces the upward water velocity.