SBIR-STTR Award

An analytical instrument capable of selecting coal blends thatmeet fuel and sulfur dioxide requirements with minimum postcombustion emissions will be assembled and demonstrated in PhaseI. The analyzer will use nuclear magnetic resonance to measurethe carbon, hydrogen, and the moisture contents of coal and x-rayfluorescence to measure its ash and sulfur contents. Thisapproach to coal evaluation recognizes that a complete elementalanalysis is not necessary for the calculation of heat value andenvironmental impact of coals as they are used by most utilityboilers. A reliable moisture analysis is essential in theevaluation of a coal's utility. A nuclear magnetic resonancespectrometer can quantitatively measure the various types ofwater found in coal plus the concentration of hydrogen bound tocarbon atoms. Those measurements together with the determinationof ash and sulfur by x-ray fluorescence spectrometry allow theselection of coal blends that best meet the emissions and fuelrequirements of utility boilers. The combined spectrometer can beconfigured either as a small, relatively inexpensive laboratorydevice to measure individual samples sequentially, or as anon-line dynamic process control analyzer to characterize coalstreams of any size.Anticipated Results /Potential Commercial Applications as described by the awardee: This coal analyzer will be designed foroperation by plant operators either on-line in the field, or in alaboratory. It will provide low cost real-time measurements tocharacterize coal at mines, transfer stations, gasification orliquefaction plants, blending facilities to select coal blendswhich will meet emission standards when burned, or at utilityboilers for combustion optimization.