Experimental study on the activation of coal gasification fly ash from industrial CFB gasifiers

Coal gasification fly ash(CGFA)is an industrial solid waste from the coal circulating fluidized bed(CFB)gasification process,and it needs to be effectively disposed to achieve sustainable development of the environment.To realize the application of CGFA as a precursor of porous carbon materials,the physicochemical properties of three kinds of CGFA from industrial CFB gasifiers are analyzed.Then,the activation potential of CGFA is acquired via steam activation experiments in a tube furnace reactor.Finally,the fluidization activation technology of CGFA is practiced in a bench-scale CFB test rig,and its advantages are highlighted.The results show that CGFA is characterized by a high carbon content in the range of 54.06%–74.09%,an ultrafine particle size(d50:16.3–26.1 μm),and a relatively developed pore structure(specific surface area SSA:139.29–551.97 m^(2)·g^(-1)).The proportion of micropores in CGFA increases gradually with the coal rank.Steam activation experiments show that the pore development of CGFA mainly includes three stages:initial pore development,dynamic equilibrium between micropores and mesopores and pore collapse.The SSA of lignite fly ash(LFA),subbituminous fly ash(SBFA)and anthracite fly ash(AFA)is maximally increased by 105%,13%and 72%after steam activation;the order of the largest carbon reaction rate and decomposition ratio of steam among the three kinds of CGFA is SBFA>LFA>AFA.As the ratio of oxygen to carbon during the fluidization activation of LFA is from 0.09 to 0.19,the carbon conversion ratio increases from 14.4%to 26.8%and the cold gas efficiency increases from 6.8%to 10.2%.The SSA of LFA increases by up to 53.9%during the fluidization activation process,which is mainly due to the mesoporous development.Relative to steam activation in a tube furnace reactor,fluidization activation takes an extremely short time(seconds)to achieve the same activation effect.It is expected to further improve the activation effect of LFA by regulating the carbon conversion ratio range of 27%–35%to create pores in the initial development stage.

Lowering ash slagging and fouling tendency of high-alkali coal by hydrothermal pretreatment

High-alkali species in coal are notorious for causing ash slagging and fouling incidents.In this paper,four high-alkali coals were individually subject to hydrothermal pretreatment(HTP),within a batch-type autoclave at 300 -C for 1 h,and the treated coals were analyzed,along with the oxygen-containing functional groups determined by Fourier transform infrared spectrometer(FT-IR).Then the alkali species and other components in the coal ash were quantified by X-ray fluorescence(XRF)for evaluating the ash slagging and fouling tendency.Apart from this,FactSage was adopted to simulate the occurrence and transformation of alkali species during coal thermal conversion ending at various temperatures.The findings indicate that the treated coals are superior to the parent ones in terms of certain remarkable changes via HTP.The moisture,oxygen and sulfur of the hydrothermally treated coals decline obviously,while the calorific value rises sharply.HTP could reduce the alkali species to less than 2%(%,by weight,equivalent to Na2O in dry ash),with a maximum removal ratio of 88.9%,lowering the ash slagging and fouling tendency.The proposed mechanism of HTP was that the alkali species in coal matrix became released due to the breakage of the coal functional groups and micropores during HTP.

Ash Detection of Coal Slime Flotation Tailings Based on Chromatographic Filter Paper Sampling and Multi-Scale Residual Network

The detection of ash content in coal slime flotation tailings using deep learning can be hindered by various factors such as foam,impurities,and changing lighting conditions that disrupt the collection of tailings images.To address this challenge,we present a method for ash content detection in coal slime flotation tailings.This method utilizes chromatographic filter paper sampling and a multi-scale residual network,which we refer to as MRCN.Initially,tailings are sampled using chromatographic filter paper to obtain static tailings images,effectively isolating interference factors at the flotation site.Subsequently,the MRCN,consisting of a multi-scale residual network,is employed to extract image features and compute ash content.Within the MRCN structure,tailings images undergo convolution operations through two parallel branches that utilize convolution kernels of different sizes,enabling the extraction of image features at various scales and capturing a more comprehensive representation of the ash content information.Furthermore,a channel attention mechanism is integrated to enhance the performance of the model.The combination of the multi-scale residual structure and the channel attention mechanism within MRCN results in robust capabilities for image feature extraction and ash content detection.Comparative experiments demonstrate that this proposed approach,based on chromatographic filter paper sampling and the multi-scale residual network,exhibits significantly superior performance in the detection of ash content in coal slime flotation tailings.

Alkali desilicated coal fly ash as substitute of bauxite in lime-soda sintering process for aluminum production

By desilication treatment,the Al2O3/SiO2 molar ratio of coal fly ash could be improved to the range of 1.63-2.0.The desilicated coal fly ash(DSCFA)was enriched in alumina extraction.A processing technology was developed for alumina extraction from the DSCFA with the lime sintering process.Ca/(SiO2+TiO2)molar ratio,and NaO/Al2O3 molar ratio,sintering time,and temperature were the most significant parameters impacting on the aluminum extraction efficiency.The optima aluminum extraction efficiency was obtained under conditions of Ca/(SiO2+TiO2)molar ratio of 2.0,NaO/Al2O3 molar ratio of 0.98,and sintering at 1 200 ℃for 60 min.Astandard industrial dissolution method was used under conditions of caustic ratio(αk=n(NaO)/n(Al2O3)of 2.0,Al2O3 concentration of 50 g/L,sodium hydroxide concentration(Nk)of 60.78 g/L,Na2CO3 concentration of 10 g/L,temperature of 85℃, and dissolution duration of 10 min.The final aluminum extraction efficiency was 90%.

Character of the Si and Al Phases in Coal Gangue and Its Ash

Analysis of the Si and AI phases in coal gangue fuel and its ash is important for use of coal gangue ashes. A comprehensive study by theoretical and experimental analyses with differential thermal analysis, X-ray diffraction and Infrared Spectroscopy has been made in the present article to explore the diagram of the Si and Al phases in coal gangue fuel and its ashes. It is found that kaolinite and quartz are the main phases in coal gangue fuel. The ratio of moles A1203 to SiO2 （i.e., Al2O3 （mole） / SiO2 （mole）） is usually no more than 0.5 in most coal gangue fuel and its ashes. The kaolinit at about 984℃ releases a large quantity of SiO2, which makes calcine coal gangue more active than coal gangue itself. The relationship between the ratio A1203 （mole）]SiO2（mole）and the components of coal gangue ash is analyzed, resulting in a formula to calculate the quantity of each phase. Applying the formula to the testing samples from an electric plant in north China supports the above conclusions.

Recovering germanium from coal ash by chlorination with ammonium chloride

A new process of enriching germanium from coal ash was developed. The processinvolves in mixing the coal ash and ammonium chloride and then roasting the mixture to producegermanium chloride that is then absorbed by dilute hydrochloric acid and hydrolyzed to germaniumoxide. The germanium recovery reached to 80.2% at the optimum condition: mass ratio of NH_4Cl/coalash is 0.15, roasting temperature 400℃ and roasting time 90 min.

Flux mechanism of compound flux on ash and slag of coal with high ash melting temperature

The melting temperature of Z coal ash was reduced by adding calcium–magnesium compound flux(WCaO/WMgO=1). In the process of simulated coal gasification, the coal ash and slag were prepared. The transformation of minerals in coal ash and slag upon the change of temperature was studied by using X-ray diffraction(XRD). With the increase of temperatures, forsterite in the ash disappears, while the diffraction peak strength of magnesium spinel increases,and the content of the calcium feldspar increases, then the content of the amorphous phase in the ash increases obviously. The species and evolution process of oxygen, silicon, aluminum, calcium, magnesium at different temperatures were analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS). The decrease of the ash melting point mainly affects the structural changes of silicon, aluminum and oxygen. The coordination of aluminum and oxygen in the aluminum element structure, e.g., tetracoordinated aluminum oxide, was changed. Tetrahedral [AlO4] and hexacoordinated aluminoxy octahedral [AlO6] change with the temperature changing. The addition of Ca2+ and Mg2+ destroys silica chain, making bridge oxide silicon change into non-bridge oxysilicon;and bridge oxygen bond was broken and non-bridge oxygen bond was produced in the oxygen element structure. The addition of calcium and magnesium compound flux reacts with aluminum oxide tetrahedron, aluminum oxide octahedron and silicon tetrahedron to promote the breakage of the bridge oxygen bond. Ca2+ and Mg2+ are easily combined with silicon oxide and aluminum oxide tetrahedron and aluminum. Oxygen octahedrons combine with non-oxygen bonds to generate low-melting temperature feldspars and magnesite minerals, thereby reducing the coal ash melting temperatures. The structure of kaolinite and mullite was simulated by quantum chemistry calculation, and kaolinite molecule has a stable structure.

Catalytic spectrophotometric determination of trace vanadium in fly ash and coal gangue by Triton X-100 enhancing effect

Trace Ⅴ(Ⅴ) catalyzes mightily the decolorization reaction of arsenazo Ⅲ(AsA Ⅲ) by oxidizing with H_2O_2 in a pH 4.0 HAc-NaAc buffer solution, and the addition of TritonX-100 can further increase the sensitivity of the reaction and its catalytic extent is linear withthe content of Ⅴ(Ⅴ). A catalytic spectrophotometric procedure for determining trace Ⅴ(Ⅴ)wasdeveloped. The results show that the maximun absorption of the color solution is at 560 nm and thedetection limit of the method for Ⅴ(Ⅴ) is 0.014 mg·L^(-1). Beer's law is obeyed for Ⅴ(Ⅴ) in therange of 0.00-0.20 mg·L^(-1). The recoveries are 99.0%-104.6%, and the relative standarddeviations (RSD) are 2.7%-3.7%. Combined with ion-exchange resin, the method has been applied to thedetermination of trace vanadium in fly ash and coal gangue with satisfactory results.

The Future Resources for Eco-building Materials:Ⅱ. Fly Ash and Coal Waste

To use fly ash and coal waste effectively, the current technologies for reprocessing and recycling these wastes into eco-building materials were reviewed, such as utilizing fly ash as the component of fly ash cement and low heat cement after the processes of separation, removal of carbon remains and fine comminution, calcining coal waste into kaolin and meta-kaolin with suspension technology, and preparing clinkerless alkali-activated geopolymer materials with fly ash and meta-kaolin.

Hydrothermal synthesis of zeolites-calcium silicate hydrate composite from coal fly ash with co-activation of Ca(OH)_(2)-NaOH for aqueous heavy metals removal

Coal fly ash is a typical secondary aluminum/silicon resource.The preparation of zeolite-type absorbent is a potential way for its value-added utilization,while the purity and adsorption property of zeolite are limited due to the occurrence of side reactions in the synthesis process.In this study,a designated composite consisted of crystalline zeolites and amorphous calcium silicate hydrate was selected,which was direct synthesized from fly ash under conditions of a Ca/Si molar ratio of 0.8,an initial NaOH concentration of 0.5 mol/L,a hydrothermal temperature of 170℃and a liquid–solid ratio of 15 mL/g.The results indicated that this composite had superior adsorption property for a variety of heavy metals,which was based on the exchange of calcium and sodium ions in zeolites and calcium silicate hydrate.Its adsorption capacities for Pb^(2+),Ni^(2+),Cd^(2+),Zn^(2+),Cu^(2+)and Cr^(3+)attained 409.4,222.4,147.5,93.2,101.1 and 157.0 mg/g,respectively,in single solution with a pH of 4.5.After regulating the synthesis conditions,the transformation of amorphous calcium silicate hydrate into crystallized tobermorite weakened the adsorption capacity of the composite.Besides,due to the competitive adsorption in a multiple ions solution,the adsorption capacities for these heavy metals had a reduction.

Modification of ash flow properties of coal rich in calcium and iron by coal gangue addition

Flow property of coal ash and slag is an important parameter for slag tapping of entrained flow gasifier.The viscosity of slag with high contents of calcium and iron exhibits the behavior of a crystalline slag,of which viscosity sharply increases when temperature is lowered than temperature of critical viscosity(TCV).The fluctuation in temperature near the TCVcan cause an accumulation of slag inside the gasifier.In order to prevent slag blockage,it is necessary to adjust the ash composition by additive to modify the flow property of coal rich in calcium and iron.Main components of coal gangue are Al_(2)O_(3) and SiO_(2),which is a potential additive to modify the ash flow properties of these coals.In this work,we investigated the ash flow properties of a typical coal rich in calcium and iron by adding coal gangue with different SiO_(2)/Al_(2)O_(3)ratio.The results showed that the ash fusion temperatures(AFTs)firstly decreased,and then increased with increasing amount of coal gangue addition.Chemical composition of coal ash rich in calcium and iron moved from gehlenite primary phase to anorthite,quartz and corundum primary phases.The slags with coal gangue addition behaved as a glassy slag,of which the viscosity gradually increased as temperature decreased.Besides,a high SiO_(2)/Al_(2)O_(3)ratio of coal gangue was beneficial to modify the slag viscosity behavior.Addition of coal gangue with a high SiO_(2)/Al_(2)O_(3)ratio impeded formation of crystalline phases during cooling.This work demonstrated that coal gangue addition was an effective way to improve the ash flow properties of the coal rich in calcium and iron for the entrained flow gasifier.

Dissolution of Rare Earth Elements from Coal Fly Ash Particles in a Dilute H₂SO₄Solvent

Recently, the worldwide supply of rare earth element (REE) resources will be severely restricted. On the other hand, coal fly ash particles emitted from coal-fired electric power plants contain relatively high concentrations of REEs. The contents of REEs in coal fly ash are regularly several hundreds of ppmw. In order to extract and recover REEs from coal fly ash particles, as a first step, we have investigated their dissolution behavior in a dilute H2SO4 solvent. The REE content of coal fly ash specimens has been precisely determined, and their presence in the ash component of the original coal and their enrichment in coal fly ash particles during coal combustion have been suggested. REEs in coal fly ash dissolve gradually in H2SO4 over time, and this implies two types of occurrences of the REEs in coal fly ash particles. By applying the unreacted core model to the dissolution behavior of REEs in a H2SO4 solvent, we can explain both types of occurrences.

Removal of Cr (VI) from Aqueous Solution Using Ultrafine Coal Fly Ash

Coal fly ashes WSRA and BQRA were ball milled for 5 h to produce their ultrafine coal fly ashes WSUA and BQUA, respectively. Batch kinetic, isotherm and pH effect on adsorption were studied to evaluate removal of Cr （VI） from aqueous solutions by ultrafine coal fly ashes comparing with raw coal fly ashes. The kinetics of adsorption indicates the process to be intraparticle diffusion controlled and follows the Lagergren first-order kinetics for all coal fly ashes. The first-order rate constants （k1） of Cr （VI） adsorption onto WSRA, WSUA, BQRA and BQUA are 1.981, 1.497, 2.119 and 1.500 （×10^-2） min^-1, respectively. The adsorption capacities of WSUA and BQUA are much better than those of WSRA and BQRA. Equilibrium adsorption data of all coal fly ashes well satisfy the Langmuir isotherm. The adsorbed amounts of Cr （VI） onto WSUA and BQUA decrease from pH 2 to pH 6 and then increase up to pH 12.

Removal of lead(Pb(Ⅱ))and zinc(Zn(Ⅱ))from aqueous solution using coal fly ash(CFA)as a dual-sites adsorbent

Coal fly ash(CFA)is composed of minerals containing some oxides in crystalline phase(i.e.,quartz and mullite),as well as unburned carbon as mesoporous material,thus enabling CFA to act as a dual-sites adsorbent with unique properties.This work focused on the adsorption of Pb(Ⅱ)and Zn(Ⅱ)from binary system,a mixture containing two metal ion solutions present simultaneously,onto NaOH-modified CFA(MCFA).Several adsorption tests were conducted to evaluate the effect of several parameters,including pH and contact times.The experiment results indicated that chemical treatment of CFA with NaOH increased pore volume from 0.021 to 0.223 cm^3·g^(-1).In addition,it could also enhance the availability of functional groups on both minerals and unburned carbon,resulting in almost 100%Pb(Ⅱ)and 97%Zn(Ⅱ)adsorbed.The optimum pH for adsorption system was pH=3 and quasi-equilibrium occurred in 240 minutes.Equilibrium data from the experimental results were analyzed using Modified Extended Langmuir(MEL)and Competitive Adsorption Langmuir-Langmuir(CALL)isotherm models.The analysis results showed that the CALL isotherm model could better describe the Pb(Ⅱ)and Zn(Ⅱ)adsorption process onto MCFA in binary system compared with MEL isotherm model.

Bioleaching of trace elements and rare earth elements from coal fly ash

Coal fly ash originated from coal combustion has high concentrations of metals. If suitable leaching techniques are identified, then coal fly ash could serve as a useful source of valuable minerals including rare earth elements (REEs). In this study, three microbial strains, Candida bombicola, Phanerochaete chrysosporium and Cryptococcus curvatus were tested on their performance of leaching trace elements and REEs from fly ash. Through comparing mineral loss and leaching efficiencies resulting from indirect leaching or use of the culture supernatant, C. bombicola was identified to be the best leading to the highest mineral loss and extracting efficiencies of trace elements and REEs among the three strains. The highest mineral loss observed from using the supernatant of this yeast strain was 59.7%. Among all trace elements, As and Mo had the highest leaching efficiency of 80.9% and 79.5%. respectively. The same leaching test led to 67.7% of Yb and 64.6% of Er dissolved from the ash. This study, thus, demonstrated that bioleaching is feasible for leaching metals out of fly ash. The C. bombicola strain deserves further investigation due to its robust actions on metal leaching.

Influence of Coal Fly Ash Particle Size on Structure and Adsorption Properties of Forming Adsorbents for Cr^6＋

Forming adsorbents FFA-R,FFA-A and FFA-B were prepared from different particle size coal fly ashes FA-R,FA-A and FA-B,their average particle sizes（d_（50）） were 15.75,3.61 and 1.73 μm respectively.The structure and adsorption properties for Cr^（6＋） of forming adsorbents from aqueous solution were studied.The results show that forming adsorbent prepared from the coal fly ash with smaller particle size exhibits higher specific surface area,higher pore volume and better adsorption properties for Cr^（6＋）.The adsorption kinetics of Cr^（6＋） on FFA-R,FFA-A and FFA-B fitts the second order kinetic model and the second adsorption rate constants are 7.523,3.197 and 2.187 mg·g^（-1）·min^（-1/2）,respectively.The adsorption of Cr^（6＋） on FFA-R,FFA-A and FFA-B can be described in terms of Langmuir isotherms better,and the adsorption processes are spontaneous and exothermic.

Dry coal fly ash cleaning using rotary triboelectrostatic separator

More than 80 million metric tons of fly ash is produced annually in the U.S. as coal combustion by-product. Coal fly ash can be converted to value-added products if unburned carbon is reduced to less than 2.5%. However, most of fly ash is currently landfilled as waste due to lack of efficient purification technologies to separate unburned carbon from fly ash. A rotary triboelectrostatic separator has been developed and patented recently at the University of Kentucky with unique features. Several fly ash samples have been used to understand the effects of major process parameters on the separation performance. The results show that compared to existing triboelectrostatic separators, the rotary triboelectrostatic separator has significant advantages in particle charging efficiency, solids throughput, separation efficiency, applicable particle size range.

An advanced ash fusion study on the melting behaviour of coal,oil shale and blends under gasification conditions using picture analysis and graphing method

This study investigates the potential of solid fuel blending as an effective approach to manipulate ash melting behaviour to alleviate ashrelated problems during gasification,thus improving design,operability and safety.The ash fusion characteristics of Qinghai bituminous coal together with Fushun,Xinghua and Laoheishan oil shales(and their respective blends)were quantified using a novel picture analysis and graphing method,which incorporates conventional ash fusion study,dilatometry and sintering strength test,in a CO/CO_(2)atmosphere.This imagebased characterisation method was used to monitor and quantify the complete melting behaviour of ash samples from room temperature to 1520℃.The impacts of blending on compositional changes during heating were determined experimentally via Xray diffraction and validated computationally using FactSage.Results showed that the melting point of Qinghai coal ash to be the lowest at 1116℃,but would increase up to 1208℃,1161℃and 1160℃with the addition of 30%50%of Laoheishan,Fushun,and Xinghua oil shales,respectively.The formation of highmelting anorthite and mullite structures inhibits the formation of lowmelting hercynite.However,the sintering point of Qinghai coal ash was seen to decrease from 1005℃to 855℃,834℃,and 819℃in the same blends due to the formation of lowmelting aluminosilicate.Results also showed that blending directly influences the sintering strength during the various stages of melting.The key finding from this study is that it is possible to mitigate against the severe ash slagging and fouling issue arising from high calcium and iron coals by cogasification with a high silicaalumina oil shale.Moreover,blending coals with oil shales can also modify the ash melting behaviour of fuels to create the optimal ash chemistry that meets the design specification of the gasifier,without adversely affecting thermal performance.

An Evaluation on the Physical and Chemical Composition of Coal Combustion Ash and Its Co-Placement with Coal-Mine Waste Rock

In the last few decades, the utilization of coal to generate electricity was rapidly increasing. Consequently, the production of coal combustion ash (CCA) as a by-product of coal utilization as primary energy sources was increased. The physical and geochemical characteristics of CCA were site-specific which determined by both inherent coal-source quality and combustion condition. This study was intended to characterize the physical, chemical and mineralogical properties of a coal-combustion ash (CCA) from a site specific power plant and evaluate the leachate characteristic of some scenario on the co-placement of CCA with coal-mine waste rock. The physical properties such as specific gravity, dry density, porosity and particle size distribution were determined. Chemically, the CCA sample is enriched mainly in silica, aluminum, iron, and magnesium along with a little amount of calcium and sodium which includes in the class C fly ash category. Moreover, it is found that the mineral phases identified in the sample were quartz, mullite, aragonite, magnetite, hematite, and spinel. Co-placement experiment with mudstone waste rock shows that the CCA, though it has limited contribution to the decreasing permeability, has important contributed to increase the quality of leachate through releasing higher alkalinity. Moreover, addition of CCA did not affect to the increase of the trace metal element in the leachate. Hence, utilization of CCA by co-placement with coal mine waste rock in the dumping area is visible to be implemented.

Microstructure and properties of mullite-based porous ceramics produced from coal fly ash with added Al_2O_3

Using coal fly ash slurry samples supplemented with different amounts of Al_2O_3,we fabricated mullite-based porous ceramics via a dipping-polymer-replica approach,which is a popular method suitable for industrial application.The microstructure,phase composition,and compressive strength of the sintered samples were investigated.Mullite was identified in all of the prepared materials by X-ray diffraction analysis.The microstructure and compressive strength were strongly influenced by the content of Al_2O_3.As the Al/Si mole ratio in the starting materials was increased from 0.84 to 2.40,the amount of amorphous phases in the sintered microstructure decreased and the compressive strength of the sintered samples increased.A further increase in the Al_2O_3 content resulted in a decrease in the compressive strength of the sintered samples.The mullite-based porous ceramic with an Al/Si molar ratio of 2.40 exhibited the highest compressive strength and the greatest shrinkage among the investigated samples prepared using coal fly ash as the main starting material.