A new coal processing method has been developed that will remove water and some impurities from PRB coal without exposing that processed coal to spontaneous combustion:
If commercially successful the effect on railroads is twofold: Unit trains out of the PRB can haul 30% more BTU’s than currently, and those few steam locomotives still around can run a little longer between refueling and a little cleaner out of the stack.
The problem with other coal drying processes is that spontaneous combustion which required closed hoppers for transport. This Cowboy Coal can be hauled in regular coal hoppers/gondolas.
Well either way, it can spontanious combust, if you put too much water on it, it will combust. It seems more logical to place the coal processors at the end location. But then again, This is a pretty dry place we have here.
All the great technology comes from Wyoming!! [:D]
In Portugal they import a lot of coal which they burn in an inland power station. The wagons they use have sheets which are put in place once they’ve been loaded with coal. These have the added benefit of preventing coal dust from flying out.
The processing method described above sounds a bit like a high-tech method of converting coal to coke. A quick perusal of one of the links suggests that a variation of the coke oven problem crops up: how do you dispose of the impurities that have been removed, some of which are an environmental problem in their own right?
That was one of the things we had discovered when we were trying to lure the ACCP “Syncoal” folks to construct their commercial plant here in the PNW, e.g. it was more cost effective to transport raw coal to a syncoal plant located nearer to the end users, than it was to transport the syncoal LD via enclosed hoppers (needed to prevent spon com).
Hopefully, one of these enterprises will be up and running soon so we can start to supplement the dozens of “hog fuel” burners of our wood products industries with synthetic coal. Right now, there is not enough wood waste available to meet all the heat and energy needs of these wood product facilities, so they are having to use expensive natural gas. Synthetic coal would be a perfect fit, and would be compliant with the emissions requirements of hog fuel boilers that currently cannot use raw coal (except for expensive Eastern coals).