The report describes the facility construction and gives results of preliminary tests for a project that seeks a fundamental understanding of the factors and conditions that cause the production of environmental pollutants in synthetic fuels processes. Tasks include: operation of a laboratory-scale coal gasification facility; collection and chemical analysis of effluent stream samples; compilation and analysis of resulting data; and evaluation of these data. The experimental system operates successfully and reliably at gasification temperatures up to 1370 K, pressures up to 1.2 MPa, and gas generation rates of about 20 standard liters/min. Analytical chemical methods, developed for analysis of effluents from these coal gasification tests, promise to achieve the required levels of sensitivity and extent of compound identification and quantitation. For example, liquid chromatography/mass spectrometer/computer analysis is used to quantitate organic compounds. The major pollutant classes are benzene and its substituents, thiols and sulfides, phenols, fused polycyclics, sulfur heterocyclics, and inorganic sulfur compounds.

Grant R804979, program element no EHE623A. Aug. 1978. Includes bibliographical references (p. 100-102).