Properties

Coal gas is a mixture of gases i.e. hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide and volatile hydrocarbons

procured by the destructive distillation of coal. It is a flammable gas and is made from coal which
supplied via a piped system and is obtained from coal in the absence of air and contains nitrogen
and carbon dioxide.

Formation of Coal Gas

Coal gas is procured from the distillation of soft coal and is a by-product of coke. It does not have
any fixed composition. Most of the coal gas consists of hydrogen and methane with small amounts
of other hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide (a poisonous gas), carbon dioxide, and nitrogen.

Coal seam gas (CSG) is a type of unconventional gas. It is a natural gas, consisting
primarily of methane, which is found in coal deposits.

Extraction Method

Coal seam gas is natural gas found in coal deposits, typically 300-600 metres underground.
During the formation of coal, large quantities of gas are generated and stored within the coal
on internal surfaces. Because coal has a large internal surface area, it can store up to seven
times as much gas as a conventional natural gas reservoir of equal rock volume.

Coal seam gas is held in place by water pressure. To extract it, wells are drilled through the coal
seams and the water pressure is reduced by extracting some of the water. This releases natural
gas from the coal. The gas and water are separated and the gas is piped to compression plants
for transportation via gas transmission pipelines.

In some cases hydraulic fracturing, or ‘fracking’, is used to extract coal seam gas. Hydraulic
fracturing is the process of injecting fluid under high pressure into a coal seam to widen existing
fractures and create new ones. A ‘proppant’ such as sand is mixed with the injected fluid,
carried into the fracture and serves to keep the fractures open once the fracture treatment is
complete and the pressure is released. This enhances the removal of water and extraction of
coal seam gas. Not all coal seam gas extraction operations involve hydraulic fracturing.

Coal seam gas collects in the coal seams by bonding to the surface of coal particles.
The coal seams are generally filled with water, and it is the pressure of the water that
keeps the gas as a thin film on the surface of the coal.
CSG is extracted through wells drilled into coal seams. The initial phase of CSG
production usually involves the extraction of water from the coal seams in order to
reduce the pressure and release gas from the coal.

If the pressure within the seam is high, the gas may flow to the surface unaided.
Conversely, the gas may have to be pumped to the surface if the pressure is lower.

When CSG comes to the surface, water in the gas is separated.

The water is then treated to ensure it meets water quality standards, before it is injected
into underground water systems, called aquifers, used for other purposes such as
irrigating crops, watering livestock or for commercial use, for water supplies or added to
watercourses.

Industrial Use

The following are the uses of coal gas:

 Coal gas is used in lighting.

 The gas is also used for heating.

 Most often than not many people use this gas for cooking.

 It is used as a fuel

 Coal gas is also used as an illuminant.

It is used in the same ways as natural gas including fuelling natural gas appliances,
such as heaters and stoves, and generating electricity.

Electricity generated from CSG is a cleaner energy source as it produces around half
the emissions of electricity generated by coal.