Sulfur and ash in paleocene Wyodak-Anderson coal in the Powder River Basin, Wyoming and Montana: A fuel source beyond 2000

Conference · Wed Apr 01 04:00:00 EST 1998

OSTI ID:585407

Ellis, M S; Stricker, G D; Flores, R M; Bader, L R ^[1]

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1. Geological Survey, Denver, CO (United States)

When coal-fired power plants are required by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to meet more stringent sulfur emission standards (0.6 pound per million Btu) after the year 2000, most of the clean and compliant coals will come from the Powder River Basin in Wyoming and Montana. In 1996 more than 300 million short tons of these clean and compliant coals were produced from the Paleocene Fort Union Formation in the northern Rocky Mountains and Great Plains region. This is more than 30 percent of the total US coal production of 1.03 billion short tons in 1996. Future demand for clean and compliant coals can probably be met through production of more Fort Union coals in the region. It is projected by the Energy Information Agency (1996) that most of the low-sulfur and low-ash coals in the northern Rocky Mountains and Great Plains region will be produced from the Wyodak-Anderson coal bed/zone of the Paleocene Fort Union Formation in the Powder River Basin. To date, coal produced from the Wyodak-Anderson coal bed/zone, containing 0.5 percent sulfur, 1.2 lb SO{sub 2} per million btu, and 6 percent ash (mean values on an as-received basis) meet current EPA regulatory compliance. This coal bed/zone alone produced 262 million short tons or >26 percent of the total U.S. coal production in 1996. Based on the current consumption rates of coal and a forecast by the EIA (1996), the Wyodak-Anderson coals are projected to produce an additional 153 million short tons a year by the year 2016. At this rate of production, high quality Wyodak-Anderson coals may be adequate to fill our future energy needs.

• Research Organization: Coal and Slurry Technology Association, Washington, DC (United States)
• OSTI ID: 585407
• Report Number(s): CONF-980309--PROC.
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT
ASH CONTENT
COAL
MONTANA
POWDER RIVER BASIN
SULFUR CONTENT
WYOMING