AndreaBozzo/ceres-open-data-index huggingface dataset:
Gasoline from coal in the State of Illinois:  feasibility study

A detailed study was made of the feasibility of producing approximately 12,000 barrels per day of gasoline from high sulfur Illinois coal. The project was to be based on indirect liquefaction of coal by producing methanol and converting the methanol to raw gasoline. The plant design was based on proven processes: including atmospheric Koppers-Totzek type coal gasification, Rectisol gas purification, Claus and Scot sulfur recovery, and ICI low pressure methanol synthesis, all of which have been used in large commercial plants; and the fixed bed Mobil MTG process, which has been demonstrated in a four barrel per day pilot plant, to convert methanol into gasoline. The plant was designed to meet all federal and state regulations pertaining to environmental protection. The plant would cost approximately $1.27 billion (1981 dollars). Annual operating costs would total $243 million (1981 dollars). It has been determined that the project would not be viable in the present economic environment. Using 1981 dollars, and recognizing the present average refinery selling price in the mid-West of gasoline produced from crude oil is about $42 per barrel, the following gasoline prices have been calculated. For example, if the project were financed entirely by equity funds, then the selling price of gasoline would have to be $122 per barrel in a moderately inflating general economy in order to obtain a rate of return of 10% on the investment. The selling price would be lowered to $106 per barrel if no inflation is assumed. If 75% of the project were financed by debt at 16% interest, and the real price of coal and gasoline increased by 3% more than the general inflation rate, the selling price in 1981 dollars would be $76 per barrel in a moderately inflating economy. As the real price of gasoline increases in the future, this project and the related economics should be reviewed.

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Deposition rate sensor development project. Final report

The objective of this research project was to develop a sensor capable of real time, in situ detection of the rate of deposition of suspended particles on the surface of gas turbine components for systems utilizing coal-derived fuels for combustion. Of the several methods investigated, the system based upon correlating the thickness of the deposit layer with the amount of heat transfer to the sensor surface offers the most advantages for high-temperature, high-pressure field applications. A commercially available sensor consisting of thermopile imbedded in a ceramic filler was tested at temperatures up to 260/sup 0/C (500/sup 0/F) with fly ash deposits at surface loading levels up to 33 mg/cm/sup 2/. The output of the sensor decreased as the loading of particulate increased, and was shown to be a function of the flow velocity and the temperature of the gas stream. Radiation heat transfer effects are significant at higher temperatures. The ceramic materials of construction coupled with the thermopile design provides a robust element which can withstand high-temperature operating conditions more reliably than other methods tested or identified in the literature. The maximum particulate surface loading which can be detected is a function of heat leakage into the sides of the sensor and can be extended by increasing the thermal insulation surrounding the sensor when installed in the test section. Within the operating range of particulate loadings, the sensor had an average output of 0.043 mV/(mg/cm/sup 2/) which was independent of velocity for flow speeds below 5 m/sec. Therefore, the rate of deposition can be determined reliably over time even though the actual deposit thickness may not be known for a sensor whose calibration is uncertain due to differences in manufacture or system effects at the site of installation. 45 figs., 9 tabs.

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Pressurized fluidized-bed combustion part-load behavior. Volume I. Summary report

Tests performed during 1980 to determine the part-load characteristics of a pressurized fluidized-bed combustor for a combined-cycle power plant and to examine its behavior during load changing are discussed. Part-load operation was achieved by varying the bed temperature by amounts between 200 to 300/sup 0/F and the bed depth from between 9 and 10 ft at rates varying between 0.2 ft/min and 0.5 ft/min. The performance at part-load steady-state conditions and during transient conditions is reported with information on combustion efficiency (99% at full-load with 9 ft bed depth and 1650/sup 0/F bed temperature; 95% with 4 ft depth and 1390/sup 0/F,5170 ); sulfur retention (95/sup 0/ at full load to 80% at low bed depth and low bed temperature,5170 ); sulfur emissions (no definitive results,5170 ); NO/sub x/ emissions (tendency for increase as bed temperature was reduced,5170 ); alkali emissions (no bed temperature effect detected,5170 ); and heat transfer. It was demonstrated that load can be altered in a rapid and controlled manner by changing combinations of bed depth temperature and pressure. The most important practical change was the reduction in O/sub 2/ concentration which occurred when the bed height was increased at a rapid rate. The extra energy required to reheat the incoming bed material resulted (in the most extreme case) in a temporary drop in excess air from 65% to 12%. In a full-scale plant the loss of heat from the stored bed material would be much lower and the excess air trough when increasing load would not be as pronounced. Nevertheless, it seems prudent to design full-scale plant for a full load excess air of not less than about 50% when using bed depth as a load control parameter.

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ASPEN sensitivity study for the Great Plains Gasification Plant rectisol section

A previously developed ASPEN model of the Rectisol portion of the Great Plains Plant has been extensively revised to more closely represent the as-built plant as reflected by the plant control (PMX) diagrams. The revised models have been used to obtain a closed material balance of the Rectisol Plant. This corrects the main deficiency of the initial model which had never been run to a closed material balance. For simulation purposes, the plant is divided into three sections and a rigorous ASPEN model has been developed for each of the sections: (1) H/sub 2/S Absorption and Flash Regeneration, (2) Hot Regeneration and Naphtha Extraction, and (3) Methanol Recovery and Naphtha Stripping. A single Linear ASPEN Model for the entire Rectisol Plant has also been developed for the purpose of converging the models to a closed overall material balance. Extending ASPEN by incorporating a Simultaneous Modular convergence algorithm was investigated. This worked successfully for several simple problems including that of Cavett, although there were no computer running time advantages over the conventional Sequential Modular approach. When applied to more complex problems such as the Rectisol Plant, it failed for a variety of reasons and the rigorous section models combined with a separate linear model approach was used instead. 13 refs., 11 figs.

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Low-energy process for separating coal gasification products. Final report

The program was aimed at demonstrating the feasibility and establishing the optimum conditions for separating coal gasification products by pressure swing adsorption (PSA) using activated carbon as the sorbent. A data base was developed for the equilibrium adsorption of H/sub 2/, CO, CH/sub 4/, CO/sub 2/, H/sub 2/S and their mixtures on carbon in the temperature range of 20 to 110/sup 0/C and pressure range of 0 to 900 psig. The mixture data were fitted with four theories: ideal adsorbed solution, real adsorbed solution, loading ratio correlation, and linear partial pressure. Deviations between theory and experiment varied from 2 to 50%, which are in the same range as literature data for other gas-solid systems. Several PSA cycles were developed for separating coal gasification products. A typical 5-component mixture at 100 to 300 psig could be separated into three useful products: clean H/sub 2/ (<0.01% H/sub 2/S) at >99% purity, clean fuel gas, and an acid gas containing over 5% H/sub 2/S and 60% CO/sub 2/. Three models were developed for bulk PSA separations; equilibrium, linear driving force, and pore diffusion. The models were capable of predicting all observed PSA characteristics. Large temperature excursions were observed in bulk PSA processes. Improved PSA cycles to overcome the temperature excursions and hence to give better separations were suggested. 28 refs., 58 figs., 22 tabs.

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ASPEN sensitivity study for the Great Plains Gasification Plant Methanation Section

A previously developed ASPEN (Advanced System for Process Engineering) model of the Methanation Section (Section 1700) of the Great Plains Gasification Plant was enhanced. In this study, the original model was modified to conform with a set of preliminary computer process control diagrams from the plant. In addition, a detailed simulation of the utility requirements of the Methanation Section was included. Two types of flowsheet studies were conducted. Design cases were those simulations in which the equipment size was calculated based on such stated system requirements as a fixed temperature approach for a given heat exchanger. Rating cases were those simulations in which the size of the reactors and heat exchangers were fixed. The design case developed in this study was shown to be fairly robust in perturbation studies. However, the rating model developed from the design base case was not as flexible when subject to perturbations in hydrogen feedrate. This was to be expected since the amount of hydrogen entering the reactors has a great effect on the heat generated in the reactors. This heat must be removed in the heat exchangers, which, in the rating case, were of fixed size. The simulations clearly show that an increase in hydrogen in the feed to the methanation section can not be compensated for by the heat exchange network currently in use.

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Postflood evaluation of the North Burbank surfactant-polymer pilot

In a follow-up evaluation to the Phillips-DOE surfactant-polymer pilot in the North Burbank field of Osage County, Oklahoma, a test program was designed to determine the relative importance of the various detrimental factors - heterogeneity, crossflow, ion exchange, partitioning - leading to nonconformance, and degradation of surfactant and polymer slugs. A diagnostic well was drilled 80 ft (24m) southeast of an injection well, within the drainage area of one of the best producing wells for tertiary oil. The location was selected because: (1) there was good communication between the injector and producer in this quadrant, (2) it was one sixth of the distance between injector and producer, and should likely be swept by injected chemicals, and (3) simulation suggested that a well at this location could encounter several zones swept by surfactant, polymer, and fresh water. Rock, brine, and oil samples were taken from three noncommunicating reservoir zones and analyzed for sulfonate, polyacrylamide, alcohol, calcium, and residual oil, along with a complete brine analysis. Comparisons were made with core analyses on adjacent wells at the start of the project, and with fluids produced from them. Chloride and residual oil were low, indicating that the region had been swept and oil displaced. Sulfonate and alcohol were surprisingly high. At a sweep of less than 5% of the area, surfactant and cosurfactant were segregated, and the slug was markedly displaced toward the Type II/sup  / direction from optimality. No polyacrylamide was detected in the brine or on the rock. These observations indicate that the performance of the pilot was influenced by both heterogeneity and degradation of the chemical slug. The relative role of the polymer is still uncertain. 19 refs., 14 figs., 14 tabs.

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Organic structure. Final report for the period ending March 31, 1986

Molecular weight determinations have been performed (using low-angle laser light scattering photometry) on derivatives of a series of humic acid macromolecules derived from lignite. The humate derivatives obtained from Beulah lignite by base extraction have molecular weights ranging from 1.3 x 10/sup 6/ to 4.3 x 10/sup 5/ daltons, from low and high yield extractions respectively. Mild oxidation with p-nitroperbenzoic acid gave humic acids with slightly larger molecular weights, again inversely proportional to the yields. The nature of the aliphatic bridging groups in low-rank coals has been investigated by ruthenium tetroxide oxidations using isotope dilution GC/MS methods for analysis of the product carboxylic acids derived from oxidation of the aromatic portions of the coal. The oxygen content of coals was studied using a new spectroscopic technique, high resolution x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy. This methods was investigated for direct quantitative oxygen analysis as well as for characterization of the type of oxygen bonds in coal. The content of several of the original plant substructures, such as cellulose, lignin, and waxy materials, was investigated. 21 refs., 1 fig., 10 tabs.

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Advanced Coal-Fueled Gas Turbine Program

The objective of the original Request for Proposal was to establish the technological bases necessary for the subsequent commercial development and deployment of advanced coal-fueled gas turbine power systems by the private sector. The offeror was to identify the specific application or applications, toward which his development efforts would be directed; define and substantiate the technical, economic, and environmental criteria for the selected application; and conduct such component design, development, integration, and tests as deemed necessary to fulfill this objective. Specifically, the offeror was to choose a system through which ingenious methods of grouping subcomponents into integrated systems accomplishes the following: (1) Preserve the inherent power density and performance advantages of gas turbine systems. (2) System must be capable of meeting or exceeding existing and expected environmental regulations for the proposed application. (3) System must offer a considerable improvement over coal-fueled systems which are commercial, have been demonstrated, or are being demonstrated. (4) System proposed must be an integrated gas turbine concept, i.e., all fuel conditioning, all expansion gas conditioning, or post-expansion gas cleaning, must be integrated into the gas turbine system.

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Design optimization in underground coal systems. Sections 1-4. Interim report, October-December 1978

Work on the structural properties of coal and rocks was confined to preparation of the final report Structural Characteristics of Coal. Continued effort was made to upgrade and improve the longwall simulation. As part of the effort, a fresh look is being taken at the method of calculating support loads and in particular the method of determining whether a roof will form a cantilever behind the chock line. The system, based purely on strata strength, density, modulus, and thickness consideration, appears limited in scope as it ignores the rock mass properties. Therefore, a rock mass classification method of characterizing the roof strata is being investigated. In particular this would allow evaluation of the joint systems in addition to other structural properties and should provide a more realistic determination of support load. The major problem with the approach is seen to be the difficulty in obtaining adequate rock mass data from exploration boreholes. This problem is also to be investigated particularly in the light of new down-the-hole geothermal investigation devices. Work continued on the final report of the roof truss portion of the work. The report includes the theory, modeling method, experimental and field data, and the analysis and correlation of the above, in addition to recommendations concerning efficient installation and usage of roof trusses.

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Hydrogasifier development commercial design of single-stage commercial scale and process development scale hydrogasifiers

An evaluation of the process requirements resulting from changing the Hydrane process from a two-stage hydrogenation to a single-stage hydrogasification process was undertaken by the Dravo Corporation for the Morgantown Energy Research Center, US Department of Energy, Morgantown, and West Virginia. Hydrogenation is the reaction of coal with hydrogen to produce gaseous and/or liquid products. Hydrogasifiation is the gasification of coal by direct reaction with hydrogen to produce gaseous products only. The present single-stage process scheme has further developed hydrogasification to incorporate rapid heating of fine coal particles (70%, -200 mesh) to the reaction temperature (1600 to 2000/sup 0/F). The heating rate has been estimated to be in excess of 1 x 10/sup 60/K per second. The combination of the two foregoing operations, i.e., rapid heating of the particle in an atmosphere of hydrogen, results in devolatilization of the coal particles and rapid reaction of devolatilized hydrocarbons with hydrogen. This process has also been termed flash hydropyrolysis. The advantages which accrue to this process are described. A conceptual plant design study wherein the economics of the Rocketdyne hydrogasification process can be evaluated is needed. Should the economics of the system prove to be competitive with other processes, then an integrated PDU should be designed and built for further experimentation. The process chemistry having been proven, it remains to accentuate process design and hardware development.

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Western Gas Sands Porject. Status report, 1 November 1979-30 November 1979

This report summarizes November, 1979, progress of the government-sponsored projects directed toward increasing gas production from the low-permeability gas sands of the western United States. Coring was completed in the Pacific Transmission Supply Company No. 3-10A Federal well in the Greater Green River Basin, and in the Mapco Rio Blanco Unit No. 11-17F well, Uinta Basin. Projects of the National Laboratories and Energy Technology Centers progressed on schedule in November. Interruptions and shutdowns still plagued the Colorado Interstate Gas Company Miller No. 1 and Sprague No. 1 wells. Gas Producing Enterprises, Inc. Natural Buttes Unit wells continued to flow to sales. All testing has been completed at Mitchell Energy Corporation Muse-Duke No. 1 well.

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Western Gas Sands Project. Status report, 1 January-31 January 1980

This report summarizes January, 1980, progress of the government-sponsored projects directed toward increasing gas production from the low-permeability gas sands of the western United States. The USGS continued activities in the four primary areas of interest in the WGSP; coring and logging of Rainbow Resources No. 1-3 Federal well, Sweetwater County, Wyoming, was completed during January. The DOE Well Test Facility was moved to Wattenberg field to monitor well tests at the Colorado Interstate Gas Company cyclic injection site. Sixteen minifracs were conducted at the Nevada Test Site in conjunction with Sandia Mineback program.

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Chemical explosive fracturing Devonian shale and Canyon Sands. Final report, 1 July 1976-31 December 1979. [Astrofrac]

The Devonian shale resource which underlies much of Appalachia and was the formation of interest in Kentucky and West Virginia is discussed. The CEF process is described which consists of pumping two non-detonable chemical streams down the well bore to a mixer where the liquid explosive is manufactured. The explosive is displaced down the tubing to the bottom of the well and out into the formation rock. It detonates in thin films as well as in the borehole thus fracturing the rock and increasing the permeability. Site selection, pre and post shot flow tests, cleanout and production results are presented. The problems encountered are discussed. Evaluation led to modified and improved placement, initiation, and cleanout techniques. Projected costs for the improved simulation and cleanout technique are presented. Additional tests to determine the caging/springing effect in the borehole are planned by Petroleum Technology Corporation.

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Proceedings of the first annual fuel cells contractors review meeting

The overall objective of this program is to develop the essential technology for private sector commercialization of the various fuel cell electrical generation systems. The purpose of this meeting was to bring together the research and development (R D) participants in the DOE/Fossil Energy-sponsored Fuel Cells Program to present key results of their research. Major emphasis was on phosphoric acid, molten carbonate, and solid oxide technology efforts. Research results of the coal gasification and gas stream cleanup R D activities pertinent to the Fuel Cells Program were also highlighted. Thirty-six papers and poster presentations were given in six formal sessions and one informal poster session: Solid Oxide Fuel Cells R D (10 papers,5156 ); Solid Oxide Fuel Cells Systems Studies (1 paper,5156 ); Molten Carbonate Fuel Cells R D (9 papers,5156 ); Molten Carbonate Fuel Cells System Studies (3 papers,5156 ); METC's On-Site Gasification/Cleanup Program (1 paper,5156 ); Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cells R D (8 papers,5156 ); and Poster Presentations (4 presentations by METC on R D coal gasification and gas stream cleanup pertinent to the Fuel Cells Program). Individual projects are processed separately for the data bases.

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Fuel cells: Technology status report

This report documents the status of the US Department of Energy's Fuel Cells Program as of the end of FY 86. The report consists of (1) an overview of the Fuel Cells Program including a brief discussion of how fuel cells work; (2) a synopsis of the Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell (PAFC), Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell (MCFC), and Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) Programs and their 1986 projects; (3) a discussion of the Fuel Cells Advanced Research and Technology Development (AR and TD) Program and projects; and (4) a summary of the Fuel Cells Systems and Applications Program. In 1986, stack development continued as the major thrust of the PAFC program. A 5-kW generator was fabricated and tested in the SOFC area. MCFC's successfully completed 5000 hours of submodule testing and plans were finalized for an 8-ft/sup 2/ full-area short stack cell. A common direction of fuel cell development has been to combine individual cells into groups called ''stacks''or ''modules''in order to increase power output. AR and TD provided information on reaction mechanisms and materials for MCFC's, SOFC's, and PAFC's. Systems Analysis and Applications development provided engineering and economic guidelines for MCFC's, SOFC's, and PAFC's to be used in a variety of utility and industrial settings. 23 refs., 22 figs., 4 tabs.

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