| Karrick Process |
Website Links For Process |
Information AboutKarrick Process |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT KARRICK PROCESS | |
| chemical reactions | |
| coal | |
| peak oil | |
| petroleum production | |
| alternative propulsion | |
| fuels | |
|
The Karrick process is a low temperature carbonization (LTC) of Coal , Shale , Lignite or any carbonaceous materials. These are heated at 680 °F to 1380 °F (360 °C to 749 °C) in the absence of air to Distill out oil and gas. The process was the work of oil shale technologist Lewis C. Karrick at the U.S. Bureau Of Mines in the 1920s. China has announced high volume commercial coal liquefaction production in late 2007 {Link without Title} , after a successful trial, starting a process that could rapidly free China from dependency upon external OPEC oil imports. The process is reported to have '60-meter-high cylindrical structures' and to be a direct coal liquefaction process. While lacking formal confirmation, the process described seems identical to the Karrick process, and appears to be a re-engineering, based upon the 1930s patents. At the time of writing (2007) America seems to have no equivalent national security oil self sufficiency strategy in place. PROCESS Karrick processing of 1 Short Ton of coal yields up to 1 Barrel of coal tars (12% by weight), richer in lighter hydrocarbons than normal Coal Tar and suitable for processing into fuels, 3000 cubic feet of rich Fuel Gas and 1500 pounds of solid smokeless char or semi-coke (for one Metric Ton , 0.175 m³ of coal tars, 95 m³ of gas, and 750 kg of semi-coke). Smokeless char can be used for utility boilers and cooking coal in steel smelters, yields more heat than raw coal and can be converted to water gas. Water Gas can be converted to oil by the Fischer-Tropsch Process . Coal Gas from Karrick LTC yields greater Energy Content than Natural Gas . Phenolic wastes are used by the chemical industry as feedstock for plastics, etc. Electrical power can be cogenerated at nominal cost. Karrick LTC process generates Carbon Dioxide . (See "Carbon/CO2 sequestration" below). HISTORY Karrick did not invent coal LTC but perfected it in his now expired patents, issued from 1931 to 1942 . Dozens of American facilities had previously produced oil, gas, grease and Paraffin from coal, but by 1873 , cheap Petroleum caused the last Coal Oil plant to close. America is today experiencing a revival of the art in response to crude oil prices of up to or exceeding $78 per barrel, geopolitical and economic considerations. (See "Fischer-Tropsch process" below) KARRICK LTC COMPARATIVE A Karrick LTC pilot plant was constructed at the University Of Utah in the 1930s, and below are some findings:
KARRICK LTC GASOLINE
KARRICK LTC BYPRODUCTS
KARRICK LTC THERMALS
KARRICK LTC VIABILITY
KARRICK LTC CRITICISMS
COAL RESERVES The United States has 26% of Earth's known coal reserves. This is sufficient to last hundreds of years by the most conservative estimates and accounts for 90% of U.S. Energy Reserves . Coal is a logical resource towards achieving Energy Independence but the Environmental Hazards associated with burning coal preclude its combustion in raw form. To paraphrase, ''"Pollution is a misallocated resource."'' (See "Learn about Coal" and "USDOE estimates of worldwide coal reserves" below) Production of Synthetic Fuel s from U.S. coal assets represents an effective means towards decreasing U.S. reliance on imported oil, reducing trade deficits and providing more economical energy than current markets offer. (See "Princeton University: Increased Automobile Fuel Efficiency and Synthetic Fuels; Alternatives for Reducing Oil Imports" below) ECONOMIC VIABILITY Oils, including petroleum, have long been extracted from coal. Production plants were merely shut down in the 1880s because crude oil became cheaper than coal liquefaction. The capability itself, however, has never disappeared. Eight years of pilot plant tests by Karrick attest that states, cities or even smaller towns, could make their own gas and generate their own electricity. John Winslow, Laboratories Technology Manager for Coal Fuels at the U.S. DOE National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), estimates that a plant producing 30,000 barrels of liquid coal per day (4,800 m³/d) can keep costs to $35-$40 per barrel. This finding was presented at the Coal Utilization Technologies Workshop, September 22 2004, at the National Research Center for Coal & Energy, Morgantown, WV. This meeting was part of the Energy Roadmap Workshop Series commissioned by West Virginia Governor Bob Wise. Potential market size is substantial, U.S. importation of petroleum products alone for 2005 being $251.6 Billion, and $302.5 Billion for 2006. (See "U.S. Census Bureau 2006 Foreign Trade Statistics" below). CONGRESSIONAL FUNDING In 1980 , the U.S. Congress approved a $20 billion Synfuel Program authorizing an Energy Mobilization Board to expedite high priority projects such as facilities to produce oil from coal and shale. However, the DOE placed great emphasis on the Bergius Process of direct Liquefaction Of Coal by Hydrogenation to produce synfuel. The Bergius Process combines coal with heated Hydrogen at 3000-5000 Psi (20 to 35 MPa ) to produce oil. Synthesis requires 7000 cubic feet of hydrogen per barrel of oil produced plus 1500 cubic feet of hydrogen per 1000 cubic feet of synfuel produced. The Bergius Process has been criticized both economically and ecologically as untenable, and given the shortcomings of the Bergius Process , the prudence of that Congressional funding allocation has been questioned. U.S. PATENTS Reference U.S. Patents issued to L.C. Karrick: SEE ALSO
EXTERNAL LINKS
|
|
|