Product Description
Large U.S. coal reserves and viable technology make promising a domestic industry producing liquid fuels from coal. Weighing benefits, costs, and environmental issues, a productive and robust U.S. strategy is to promote a limited amount of early commercial experience in coal-to-liquids production and to prepare the foundation for managing associated greenhouse-gas emissions, both in a way that reduces uncertainties and builds future capabilities. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

expensive way to make oil
Sometime during 2008 this book was written, in response to the recent rapid runup in oil prices. The perspective is that of the US government, more specifically the US Air Force. It reflects the reality that the US armed forces need a huge amount of fuel every day to conduct their missions. And within the armed forces, the greatest need is by the air force, unsurprisingly.

The book focuses on coal to liquid technology. Based in no small part on the large amounts of coal throughout the world; estimated at 3 times the equivalent of global oil. Plus, and this is crucial, the US possesses considerable reserves of coal, unlike oil. The armed forces need a secure supply.

The history of CTL is summarised. A lot of work was done by the South African oil company Sasol, during apartheid, when South Africa faced an oil boycott. Other CTL efforts are described. Notably the shale oil venture in Colorado during the 80s.

We see that all current CTL methods are expensive. It is estimated that for a CTL project to be viable inside the US, oil prices need to be at least $50-60 per barrel. Presciently, the book remarks that price volatility also hampers the projects. Today, January 2009, oil is around
$40, and has swung wildly from a high of $147 in 2008. None of this is encouraging for CTL.

Another aspect about CTL is that a lot of CO2 is produced, per barrel equivalent of output. A serious problem that contributes to global warming, unless the CO2 is sequestered or neutralised.

The book does not require a degree in petroleum engineering. It is aimed at a general audience, and is unclassified.

... Read more

Product Description
To meet future energy demand growth and replace older or inefficient units, a large number of fossil fuel-fired plants will need to bebuilt worldwide in the next decade. Yet CO2 emissions from fossil-fired power generation are a major contributor to climate change. As a result, new plants must be designed and operated at highest efficiency. The case studies in this report respond to a request to the IEA from the G8 Summit in July 2005to illustrate the degree of efficiency now achieved in modern plants in different parts of the world using various grades of fossil fuels. The plants were selected from different geographical areas, because local factors influence attainable efficiency.The results of these analyses show that the technologies for high efficiency (low CO2 emissions) and very low conventional pollutant emissions (particulates, SO2, NOx) from fossil fuel-fired power generation are available now through PCC, IGCC or NGCC at a commercially acceptable cost.Table of Content : Chapter 1. Executive Summary Chapter 2. Designing for High Efficiency Chapter 3. Case Studies and IGCC Technology Review -COAL-FIRED PLANT 1Northern Europe Sea water cooled ultra-supercritical plant Nordjyllandsværket 3, Denmark-COAL-FIRED PLANT 2Northern Europe Lignite-fired, inland ultra-supercritical PCC plant Niederaussem K, Germany-COAL-FIRED PLANT 3North America Sub-bituminous coal-fired, inland supercritical plant Genesee 3, Canada-COAL-FIRED PLANT 4Asia Bituminous coal-fired, coastal ultra-supercritical plant Isogo New Unit 1, Japan- COAL-FIRED PLANT 5Asia Bituminous coal-fired, coastal supercritical PCC plant Younghung Thermal Power Plant, Republic of Korea- COAL-FIRED PLANT 6Asia Clean coal-fired, inland supercritical PCC plant Wangqu 1 and 2, China-COAL-FIRED PLANT 7Asia High ash bituminous coal-fired, inland PCC plant Suratgarh, India- COAL-FIRED PLANT 8Africa High ash bituminous coal-fired PCC plant with dry and wet cooling Majuba, South Africa- NATURAL GAS-FIRED PLANTEurope Enfield, United Kingdom- IGCC TECHNOLOGY REVIEWChapter 4. Review of Case Studies and Conclusions Appendix A. Data Enquiry Questionnaire Appendix B. Acronyms and Abbreviations ... Read more

Product Description
This is an OCR edition without illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from the publisher's website (GeneralBooksClub.com). You can also preview excerpts of the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Coal; Natural gas; Petroleum; Technology ... Read more

Product Description
Here is the first volume to examine sulfur in fossil fuels from a geochemical perspective. It begins with six introductory chapters that present an overview of the material, historical background, and summaries of the present state of knowledge. Subsequent chapters cover: case studies of specific sedimentary environments; characterization of sulfur in selected coals and petroleums by various methods and techniques; and the major advances in understanding geochemistry at the molecular level. This important volume fills a significant gap in the technical literature and updates the understanding of the chemical processes in geological environments giving rise to sulfur fossil fuels. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Excellent for its historic perspective
This book provides many facts that are unavailable to those interested in coal development for gasification.It is a good second text for Christopher Higman's Gasification, a modern text on the subject. What I found particularly interesting was the analysis in the end showing water usage rates by power plants using coal, shale oil, etc.. If oil was the subject of war in the twentieth century then water may be in the twenty-first century. Water usage is already a debate in developing Canada's oil shale. Plans are already being laid for shale slurry pipelines from Canada to St. Louis. What water resources will be used is a mystery. This book also looks briefly at water usage for other fuels like ethanol. The author comes to the same conclusion as the DOD: all the grain from the great plains could not meet even a share of the fuel needs of this country and the water usage would be outragious.

This is a great book for its depth of scholarship and for its conclusions. And, it is so small. Obviously, the authors wrote this book before the advent of the spin doctor.

Read this book.

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Product Description
In this report, RAND researchers assess the potential future production levels, production costs, greenhouse gases, and other environmental implications of synthetic crude oil from oil sands and fuels produced via coal liquefaction relative to conventional petroleum-based transportation fuels. The findings indicate the potential cost-competitiveness of these alternative fuels and potential economic-environmental trade-offs from their deployment. ... Read more

Product Description
This book is broadly divided into two sections. A number of main themes are discussed in the first section, 'Chemical Structure and Thermoplastic Properties of Coal', covering such topics as the relationships between the chemical structures of coals and thermoplastic phenomena under heating, studies of higher-ordered agglutination structure of coals, kinetic analyses of thermal decomposition reactions, oxidation and dilatation/contraction of coal particles, and formation mechanisms of coke structure. In the second section, 'Simulation of Coal Pyrolysis and Coke Formation', mathematical formulation models are presented to show thermoplastic phenomena of coals, strengths of produced coke, and phenomena observed when heating coal particles in packed beds. ... Read more