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U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Premium fuels from coal refuse. Final report

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:10135576
;  [1]
  1. CQ, Inc., Homer City, PA (United States)

In 1991, nearly one billion tons of coal were mined in the United States with 40--50% (450 million tons) cleaned in coal-cleaning/coal preparation plants. Of the 450 million tons, approximately 53% was cleaned in preparation plants. This refuse was discarded into fine coal impoundments or black water ponds. These ponds are not esthetically appealing and raise environmental issues. In some cases, operators have had difficulty in disposing of these fines. They have also resorted to pumping the refuse into abandoned mines and/ or recombining the fines with soil. This material is then used as fill in strip mine, land reclamation projects. Recently developed, advanced coal-cleaning processes allow the recovery of these fines from the impoundments and can convert them into useful utility, industrial, and domestic fuel.

Research Organization:
Electric Power Research Inst., Palo Alto, CA (United States); CQ, Inc., Homer City, PA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
Electric Power Research Inst., Palo Alto, CA (United States)
OSTI ID:
10135576
Report Number(s):
EPRI-TR--103709; ON: UN94008752
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English