Dry fine coal beneficiation offers a potentially cost effective means of reducing coal's ash and sulfur content. During dry processing, coal particles collide, develop triboelectric charges, and experience strong electrostatic effects. These electrostatic effects can lead to sparking and potential personnel and fire hazards. These effects also can be used in a number of electrostatic beneficiation processes that can produce superclean coal. The surface properties of coal that influence behavior in electrostatic separation and lead to nuisances and hazards are not well understood. Neither is it clear which properties are important and which are not. This research will measure and quantify the static and dynamic electrical properties of coal and coal air mixtures and then correlate those properties with performance on a pilot-scale electrostatic separator. The results of this program will be useful in dry coal beneficiation and in the mitigation of electrostatic effects during dry fine coal processing.Anticipated Results/Potential Commercial Applications as described by the awardee:This research will improve the understanding of electrostatic effects as applied to coal cleaning and dry coal processing. Potential commercial applications will improve the efficiency of sulfur and ash removal from dry coal and, by reducing electrostatic hazards, will improve the safety of handling dry coal.
