Coal Quality Parameters

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthracite

My grandparents had a Coal burner when I was young and lived with them. Anthracite coal was always the kind we would buy each winter when we could get it. It is the highest grade and quality commercially on the market because it burns better with less sulfur emissions.

For a commercial burner you would be looking to buy the best at the cheapest rates, and the rest of us hope that you would put an emissions cleaner somewhere in the works. Anthracite coal would depend upon local sources or cheapest shipping costs.

hi there ; anthracite has the highest carbon percentage / bituminous coal is the most popular fer large scale use / a bit more sulpher, rock etc / anthracite has a btu/lb rating of 13,000 bituminous slightly less , due to lower carbon content / see wikipedia .com fer more presice details / klystron

Each boiler is uniquely designed for the local available coal or fuel(s) and the anticipated desired Mw output. In early 1960's MLG&W built 3 unit Allen Steam Plant to burn three different fuels gas, coal, oil with three cyclone units capable of quick startup to avoid paying TVA escalated rates. TVA later purchased Allen from Memphis for $1 and added numerous diesel generators for emergency power (the fourth fuel minus the gas which politicians removed because of escelated gas prices)

The sweet answer is: What ever fuel the politicians agree upon.

The coal quality is also determined by politicians. Western Low sulfur coal is hauled by rail for hundreds of miles to SE power plants to avoid local high sulfur coal. The US ships coal to Japan. A little known fact is that with 80% of the world's coal, the US is one of the world's largest annual IMPORTERS of coal.

Power plant efficiency is roughly 24% because of politicial decisions to ship coal, transmit miles over inadequate and overloaded grid. TVA may transmit or charge Ga Pwr to transmit electricity from Chatt to Memphis and back to Dalton in the event Dalton is shy. One of the largest book charges for Virtually each and every utility is the purchase price of electricity over grid from other producers even though the net gain/loss may be neutral.

How do utilities measure the amount of electricity received or transmitted out over grid to/from the other utilities or produced by each power plant in the grid? When one purchases green power, how does one know whether the green power is actually generated or not and if so, where is the green source and how was it tapped?

As the type of boilers to be used in your power plant have specific operating requirements, such parameters as FSI, Volatile Matter Content and Ash Content would be of significant importance, as would be Moisture Content and BTU value.

Would suggest you have a fuel technologist familiar with your boiler type look at the available coal types.

hi aqua _doc ; nice comment regards people and happenings / thanks

hello!

aqua_doc , thanks for the comments about the happenings and people