Air/water oxidative desulfurization of coal and sulfur‐containing compounds Available to Purchase

Air/water Oxydesulfurization has been demonstrated in autoclave experiments at the Pittsburgh Energy Technology Center for various coals representative of the major U. S. coal basins. The applicability at present of this treatment for producing an environmentally acceptable coal has been restricted by recently proposed SO₂ emission standards for utility boilers. The product would, however, be attractive to the many smaller industrial coal users who cannot afford to operate and maintain flue gas desulfurization systems. It is also possible that the utility industry could realize a benefit by using chemically cleaned coal with partial flue gas scrubbing. The higher cost of the cleaned coal would be offset by the reduction in capital and operating costs resulting from decreased FGD requirements. The susceptibility of sulfur in coal to oxidative removal varies with the nature of the sulfur‐containing species. The inorganic sulfur compounds, primarily pyrite, marcasite, and iron sulfate, are more amenable to treatment than the organically bound sulfur which exhibits varying degrees of resistance depending on its chemical environment. Air/water Oxydesulfurization consistently removes in excess of 90 percent of the pyritic sulfur; the extent and efficiency of organic sulfur removal however, depends on the type of coal and severity of treatment used. In general, the organic sulfur of the higher rank coals exhibits more resistance to treatment than that of the lower rank coals; however, the accompanying heating value is greater for the latter. Similar treatment of sulfur‐containing model compounds further illustrates the relative susceptibilities of different chemical species to oxidation. Application of these data to the understanding of the complex chemistry involved in the treatment of coal is a preliminary step toward improving the efficiency of Oxydesulfurization.