A coal-derived liquid, obtained from the Coal Technology Corp.'s
mild gasification process, was
cracked over char produced from Pittsburgh No. 8 coal mixed with Plum
Run dolomite in the
Foster Wheeler carbonizer. For the purpose of comparison, calcined
Plum Run dolomite (PRD),
char produced from Pittsburgh No. 8 coal, and silicon carbide (an
inert material) were also
studied. Coal liquid feed was analyzed by sulfur-selective gas
chromatography (GC), liquid
chromatography (LC), and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and
for elemental
composition. The gaseous products of cracking were analyzed for
hydrocarbons using GC. Most
sulfur in the feed was present in molecules heavier than
dibenzothiophene and was distributed
in a variety of structures. The surviving coal liquid was analyzed
by LC. The results indicated
that deoxygenation of phenols, dealkylation of aromatic compounds (AR),
and condensation of
aromatic structures are some of the reactions occurring on the surface
of bed materials. Energies
of activation for homogeneous and for heterogeneous pyrolysis of the
coal liquid were calculated
after separating the rate of thermal cracking from the sum of rates of
thermal and catalytic
cracking.