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

The economical production of alcohol fuels from coal-derived synthesis gas. Sixth quarterly technical progress report, January 1, 1993--March 31, 1993

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/10192761· OSTI ID:10192761
Preliminary economic investigations have focused on cost reduction measures in the production of syngas from coal. A spread sheet model has been developed which can determine the cost of syngas production based upon the cost of equipment and raw materials and the market value of energy and by-products. In comparison to natural gas derived syngas, coal derived syngas is much more expensive, suggesting a questionable economic status of coal derived alcohol fuels. While it is possible that use of less expensive coal or significant integration of alcohol production and electricity production may reduce the cost of coal derived syngas, it is unlikely to be less costly to produce than syngas from natural gas. Fuels evaluation is being conducted in three parts. First, standard ASTM tests are being used to analyze the blend characteristics of higher alcohols. Second, the performance characteristics of higher alcohols are being evaluated in a single-cylinder research engine. Third, the emissions characteristics of higher alcohols are being investigated. The equipment is still under construction and the measurement techniques are still being developed. Of particular interest is n-butanol, since the MoS{sub 2} catalyst produces only linear higher alcohols. There is almost no information on the combustion and emission characteristics of n-butanol, hence the importance of gathering this information in this research.
Research Organization:
West Virginia Univ. Research Corp., Morgantown, WV (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
AC22-91PC91034
OSTI ID:
10192761
Report Number(s):
DOE/PC/91034--T5; ON: DE94002400; BR: AA2520000
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English