1. How to obtain synthetic gas?

(page 66)
Syngas can be used for power generation (IGCC) or for making fertilizers, methanol,
synthetic natural gas, hydrogen or CO2. Syngas could alternatively be sent throught the
Fischer-Tropsch process to produce diesel fuels etc.

Figure 6.3. Scheme of syngas manufacturing.

2. Syn-gas
To samo co w 1.

3. Fuel from carbon (pages 63 +)

Coal can be converted into liquid fuels like gasoline or diesel by several different
processes:

 The Fischer-Tropsch process of indirect synthesis of liquid hydrocarbons was used

in Nazi Germany, and for many years by Sasol in South Africa - in both cases,
because those regimes were politically isolated and unable to purchase crude oil on
the open market. Coal would be gasified to make syngas.
 Coal-To-Liquids, Indiana Center for Coal Technology Research - a balanced
purified mixture of CO and H2 gas, and the syngas condensed using Fischer-
Tropsch catalysts to make light hydrocarbons which are further processed into
gasoline and diesel.
 Syngas can also be converted to methanol: which can be used as a fuel, fuel
additive, or further processed into gasoline via the Mobil M-gas process.
 A direct liquefaction process Bergius process (liquefaction by hydrogenation) is
also available but has not been used outside Germany, where such processes were
operated both during World War I and World War II. SASOL in South Africa has
experimented with direct hydrogenation.
 Several other direct liquefaction processes have been developed, among these
being the SRC-I and SRC-II (Solvent Refined Coal) processes developed by Gulf
Oil and implemented as pilot plants in the United States in the 1960's and 1970's.

In the 1950s SASOL Co., developed a commercial coal liquids industry to produce
transportation fuels (gasoline and diesel) using synthesis gas produced by the
gasification of coal. Advantages of Coal-to-Liquid Fuels:
 Improves national and economic security by lessening dependence on foreign
oil and substituting plentiful, more affordable U.S. coal.
 Uses domestic resources and produces more jobs for Americans.
 Provides positive influence on balance of trade and economy.
 Provides environmental benefits, including cleaner fuels that reduce nitrogen
oxide and particulate emissions, enabling use of higher efficiency engines.
 Is capable of capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and serving as a
bridge to a hydrogen fuel future through.
 Polygeneration (linking multiple types of plants into one, such as co-production
of liquid fuels, electricity, hydrogen, etc., embodied in initiative).
One method of producing liquid fuels from coal is the Fischer-Tropsch indirect
liquefaction process:

4. Hydrogen obtaining processes.

Hydrogen is commonly recognised as the fuel of the future, owing to its unquestionable
advantage, i.e. its combustion is related to no negative effects on the environment. The
prospect of using hydrogen to feed vehicle engines relies predominantly on its ecological
purity, unlimitedness and accessibility to its resources, low transportation costs
and, finally, its properties. Hydrogen is one of the fuels with the highest energy capacity. Its
calorific value is almost three times higher than the value of hydrocarbon fuels, amounting to
120•103kJ/kg.
Steam reforming of natural gas - sometimes referred to as steam methane reforming (SMR) -
is the most common method of producing commercial bulk hydrogen. Hydrogen is used in the
industrial synthesis of ammonia and other chemicals.[4] At high temperatures (700 – 1100
°C) and in the presence of a metal-based catalyst (nickel), steam reacts with methane to yield
carbon monoxide and hydrogen.

CH4 + H2O ⇌ CO + 3 H2
Additional hydrogen can be recovered by a lower-temperature gas-shift reaction with the
carbon monoxide produced. The reaction is summarized by:

CO + H2O ⇌ CO2 + H2

5. Sasol (pages 63-65, 70)

Sasol is an international integrated energy and chemicals company. In the 1950s, South
Africa, through its SASOL Co., developed a commercial coal liquids industry to produce
transportation fuels (gasoline and diesel) using synthesis gas produced by the gasification of
coal. Modern research has further developed this technology, and SASOL has produced more
than 700 million barrels of synthetic fuels from coal since the early 1980s. The Fischer-
Tropsch process of indirect synthesis of liquid hydrocarbons was commonly used for many
years by Sasol in South Africa. This region was politically isolated and unable to purchase
crude oil on the open market. High-Temperature Fischer-Tropsch (or HTFT) is operated
at temperatures of 330oC-350 o C and uses an iron-based catalyst. This process was
used extensively by Sasol in their Coal-to-Liquid plants (CTL).

6. Cetane number and index, octane number for consumer usage. (46, 51-
52, 56)

Cetane number – temperature of the fuel self-ignition. It has a direct and substantial impact
on the character of the combustion process in a compression-ignition engine. It defines
precision of the ignition moment and determines if the combustion is complete or not. In the
combustion process it is extremely important that the ignition starts easily and the combustion
is complete, and takes place in a rhythmic manner. The higher the cetane number of a fuel, the
better its self-ignition ability, the shorter the ignition delay period, and the more regular the
course of the combustion process. The cetane number specifies volumetrically the percentage
ratio of cetane to b-methylnaphthalene in such reference mixture of those two components,
which at standardized conditions in a single-cylinder parent engine burns in the same way as
the examined fuel. Optimum cetane number values of the fuels for ignition-compression
engines should fall within the range of 45÷70 units. Too low cetane numbers (less than 45
units) deteriorate engine operation and increase fuel consumption. Increasing cetane numbers
over 70 units increases the engine tendency to rough running.
Cetane index - is used as a substitute for the cetane number of diesel fuel. The cetane
index is calculated based on the fuel's density and distillation range. the cetane index is simply
an estimation of the base (unadditized) cetane number. Cetane number should equal or exceed
cetane index, depending on the amount of additive used. Additives raising the cetane number
of diesel fuels. It has been concluded that additives break down fairly quickly under the
influence of water and long-term storage of fuels, and the cetane number is again lowered.

On the basis of research, a relationship has been determined between the cetane number (CN)
and the octane number (ON) of fuel:
𝑶𝑵
𝑪𝑵 =
𝟐
The higher temperature of the surrounding air contributes to knocking combustion in a spark-
ignition engine, but reduces the tendency of a combustion ignition engine to rough running.
At low temperatures there is less knocking tendency in a spark-ignition engine, but conditions
are created for rougher running of a compression-ignition engine.

7. Basic properties of fuels and where they can be used? (page 59, 60)

Calorific value of a fuel - the amount of heat released during the combustion of a specified
amount (mass) of the fuel. The energy value is a characteristic for each substance. It is
measured in units of energy per unit of the substance, usually mass, such as: kJ/kg, kJ/mol,
kcal/kg, Btu/lb. Heating value is commonly determined by use of a bomb calorimeter.

Energy density - the energy content of fuel is a description of the potential energy contained
in a given fuel, measured per unit of volume of the fuel.

Cetane number – described in question 6.

Cetane index - described in question 6.

Flash point – the lowest temperature where enough fluid can evaporate to form a combustible
concentration of gas. The flash point is an indication of how easy a fuel may burn. Materials
with higher flash points are less flammable or hazardous than chemicals with lower flash
points. Flash point is parameter which is primarily important for the safe handling of a fuel.

Viscosity - measure of the fluid resistance to gradual deformation by shear stress or tensile
stress. Fuel oil's viscosity strongly depends on the temperature, the higher is the temperature
the lower is the viscosity. For optimal combustion the viscosity of the fuel should be in the
range of 10-20 cSt. To maintain this value a combination of viscometer, PID controller and
heater is used. Viscometer measures the actual viscosity of the fuel, this value is compared
with the set point in the controller and the command is sent to the heater to adjust the
temperature of the fuel.

Heat of evaporation - the enthalpy change required to transform a given quantity of a

substance from a liquid into a gas at a given pressure (often atmospheric pressure, as in STP).
It is often measured at the normal boiling point of a substance.
Distillation - is a process of separating the component substances from a liquid mixture by
selective evaporation and condensation. Distillation may result in essentially complete
separation (nearly pure components), or it may be a partial separation that increases the
concentration of selected components of the mixture. Commercially, distillation has many
applications. For example:

 In the fossil fuel industry distillation is a major class of operation in obtaining

materials from crude oil for fuels and for chemical feedstocks.
 Distillation permits separation of air into its components — notably oxygen, nitrogen,
and argon — for industrial use.
 In the field of industrial chemistry, large ranges of crude liquid products of chemical
synthesis are distilled to separate them, either from other products, or from impurities,
or from unreacted starting materials.
 Distillation of fermented products produces distilled beverages with a high alcohol
content, or separates out other fermentation products of commercial value.