How Do They Make Smokeless Coal...?

Question

How do get the 'smoke' out of the coal after it's been mined? And is it better for the environment?

Answer 1

pure carbon that burns completely produces only CO2.

when there's smoke, for example from your fireplace, or a candle, it generally indicates unburned carbon.

in a fireplace, that gets deposited on the chimney walls, and can catch fire.

chimney sweeps make their living cleaning it, to prevent fires, and also insure a better draft for the fire.

coal is primarily carbon, but almost never 100% carbon.  it was formed from vegetation, and has many of the sulfur and other chemicals that were in the plant at the time.  those other elements cause pollution, and some of the smoke.

anthracite, or hard coal, has a lower level of non-carbon content, and thus burns cleaner.  you can't really "get the smoke out of coal after it's mined."  what you have to do is use cleaner coal (ie coal with fewer non-carbon matter in it) and insure that there is sufficient oxygen that it all gets burned.

then, you have to install scrubbers that filter out the impurities from what goes up the stack.

it is better for the environment if the SO3, etc., does not get released into the atmosphere.  however, today, even the CO2 is a problem, because it causes global warming.  in the coming decades that will be the greatest problem we face -- that and the wars over food and water that it causes.

Answer 2

stick nicorette patches on it...haha

Answer 3

Coal isn't too bad and is doing better all the time.  By that I mean that it is getting cleaner and cleaner as time goes forward.  The only thing it will contribute to is CO2 levels.  CO2, of course, being a harmless trace gas that occurs naturally and is essential for most vegetation.

Answer 4

When coal is burned in modern power plant in the U.S. all of the gases of combustion pass through a large baghouse that is designed much like a vacuum filter.

All the particulate matter in the gases going out the stack ( visible parts of smoke ) is removed and the stack quality is monitored for clarity.

If one of the filter bags leaks, the smoke can become visible ( opacity indicated ) and load on the plant must be reduced until a repair can be peformed.

All this dust removed from the stack emissions is then collected in hoppers and sold as fly ash for use in ready mix concrete to improve strength and workability.

It is much better for the environment than releasing all that particulate matter into the air, in China, where they are starting up a new coal fired plant every 7 to 10 days, they don't use these same methods and have big black clouds of smoke rising out of their stacks.

Answer 5

Anthracite coal is a naturally smokeless fuel and is still mined in South Wales today, albeit in limited quantities.

Coalite or Phurnacite are examples of manufactured smokeless fuels. Although different processes are used to produce a smokeless 'coal' the majority of these are based on reducing the volatile content (the gaseous component of the coal that creates the smoke), pulverising, curing and binding the coal/anthracite into a briquette.