Plasma-Based Coal Gasification for Industrial Applications

In order for the products of coal gasification to be widely used, industrial users of syngas must be assured that equal performance and significant economic benefits can be realized when switching from natural gas. To meet this objective, industrial combustion equipment must be shown to operate equally well on syngas, which is significantly different than natural gas in its combustion characteristics. It is anticipated that the typical industrial combustion system designed for natural gas will require some degree of modification to operate on syngas, a factor that an industrial customer must consider in making the switch from natural gas. This project will determine the performance characteristics of the generated syngas in a pilot-scale industrial combustion application and complete an economic analysis to determine the potential energy cost savings that can be realized from switching from natural gas to syngas. The approach will be based on coal gasification technology now under development, which utilizes an ultra-high temperature plasma that is ideally suited for the industrial-scale. Phase I will seek to optimize this plasma-based industrial gasification design for a specific target market of industries, such as iron and steel, mining, glass, paper, ceramic, and ethanol. In Phase II, sustained on-site testing of plasma gasifier-derived syngas will be undertaken in an industrial production process and combustion trials will be conducted. Commercial Applications and other Benefits as described by the awardee: By demonstrating the utilization of syngas in an industrial combustion process, without sacrificing production equipment performance, the construction of gasification plants would be enabled, providing wide ranging economic benefits.