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Chemistry of Trace Inorganic Elements in Coal Combustion Systems: A Century of Discovery
Citation:
Senior, C., E. Granite, Bill Linak, AND W. Seames. Chemistry of Trace Inorganic Elements in Coal Combustion Systems: A Century of Discovery. ENERGY AND FUELS. American Chemical Society, Washington, DC, , NA, (2020). https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.energyfuels.0c02375
Impact/Purpose:
This review presents an overview of trace element chemistry in coal combustion systems with an emphasis on what has been learned over the past century, uniquely related to the use of coal in boilers for electricity and heat production, because these are used world-wide and represent the major pathway for most trace elements from coal to be released into the environment into the foreseeable future. No review of such a complex subject can claim to be comprehensive. The authors have endeavored to highlight early, seminal work, which means that more recent work may be given short shrift, if it has been derived from earlier work.
Description:
Coal fueled the Industrial Revolution and the global expansion of electrification in the 20th century. In this century, coal use has declined in North America and Europe, but continues to increase in Asia. Coal contains many of the elements of the Periodic Table, in percent-levels or in trace amounts (ppm, ppb). The impact of many of these elements on the environment via air and water discharges from coal-fired plants has been studied with decades of research into their chemical transformations within combustion systems and their fate upon reintroduction into the environment. The transformations of the trace elements present within coal burned within industrial combustion systems can be categorized as thermal volatilizations from the coal within the furnace; thermal decomposition of trace element compounds within the coal; encapsulation within ash through its vitrification at high temperatures; oxidation of the trace elements with the myriad species contained in flue gas through gas phase (homogeneous) reactions or catalytic (gas-solid) reactions; adsorption and reactions with entrained fly ash particulates contained within the flue gas; and absorption into solutions. These transformations can, in many cases, lead to the removal of these trace elements within various pollution control devices, as well as their release into the environment. The sampling and measurement of trace elements, in the inlet coal, outlet flue gas, aqueous scrubber solutions, and ash matrices, represents a significant challenge. This review focuses on the behavior of trace elements in coal combustion systems with an emphasis on what has been learned over the past century uniquely related to the use of coal in boilers for electricity and heat production. Key accomplishments in measurement, modeling and control of trace element emissions in coal-fired systems are highlighted.
URLs/Downloads:
DOI: Chemistry of Trace Inorganic Elements in Coal Combustion Systems: A Century of Discovery