Direct Coal Liquefaction through Wave LiquefactionTM Co-Processing with Various Hydrogen-Containing Gases

摘要

Wave Liquefaction? technology is a novel direct coal liquefaction technology that overcomes inherent challenges of conventional liquefaction. It is currently being developed in collaboration between H Quest and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Wave Liquefaction? process has been demonstrated to directly convert coal with natural gas as an in-situ hydrogen source, thus potentially eliminating the need for separate hydrogen generation facilities, further reducing costs and the environmental impact of producing liquid products from coal. Previously we reported baseline technoeconomic analysis of this process: operating pressures as low as one atmosphere, low bulk process temperatures, and millisecond residence times lead to significant reductions in capital and operating costs which estimate oil production costs between $35 and $45/bbl. Most recently, viability of Wave Liquefaction? process with alternative hydrogen sources, including synthesis gas, has been demonstrated. Flexibility in hydrogen sources for Wave Liquefaction? processing eliminates commercial dependency on availability of natural gas, albeit at the expense of increasing water consumption, and offers alternative commercialization options including pre-processing for utility and gasification operations. Wave Liquefaction? processing of the raw coal would be used to directly generate synthetic oil, with the resulting char becoming feedstock for gasification and feeding syngas back into the plant. Alternatively, the syngas stream could support conventional indirect liquefaction, resulting in a hybrid direct/indirect coal liquefaction process. This offers commercialization strategies for the implementation of an initial commercial or pilot plant to be directly integrated with an existing operation, introducing a new and/or improved liquid product stream.