Coalbed Methane:A New Star of Alternative Energy for China

摘要

Coalbed methane (CBM),a by-product of coalification process,is adsorbed in the internal surface of coal at pressure and temperature of reservoir and is desorbed from coal seams during mining of coal.It is inflammable in nature,but can form an explosive mixture with air between 5％ to 15％ by volume.So it throws serious threat to miners' lives and impacts the process of mining.Besides,CBM is a greenhouse gas,which exceeds carbon dioxide in 21 times by its influence on warming the climate.Large amount of CBM emitted into the atmosphere during the mining will accelerate the process of global warming.Instead of emitting CBM into the atmosphere,its recovery and utilization as a fuel would not only alleviate the negative effects due to the emission of CBM during mining of coal but also help to meet the growing demand of energy.After the success of CBM production in the United States,many countries,particularly several coalrich ones,become more interested in CBM and actively evaluate the CBM resource potential as well as research the technology of CBM development of their own.China is abundant in coalbed methane resources.Total CBM reserves buried no deeper than 2000 m consist of about 31.46 trillion cubic meters (tcm) and China occupies leading position in the world according to its scale.In the recent years,with strong administration support,China has achieved great progress in exploration and exploitation of CBM.This paper mainly discusses about CBM resource potential,CBM development in China and its prospect.