Coal Testing Laboratory

Applications

The main use of coal is as a fossil fuel.   Over 60 % of the coal mined around the world is used for the production of electricity.  When coal is burned in the presence of oxygen, heat energy is released.  Thermal coals have high calorific values, which when burned in large industrial boilers, release heat which is used to convert water into steam, which in turn drive large turbines to produce an electric current.

Up to 20 % of coal mined globally is used in the metallurgical industry.  When heated in the absence of air, bituminous coals exhibit a plastic-like nature, which after removing moisture and most of the volatile matter, resolidifies into a porous mass high in carbon content known as coke.  Coke is produced from metallurgical coals which are heated to temperatures of over 1000 °C in large coke ovens.  The resulting cokes are much higher in carbon content than the contributing coals and are used as both fuels and reducing agents in the smelting of irons and ferro alloys and in the forging of steel.

The remaining 20 % of coal is used in various industrial applications, such as in the production of various chemicals, dyes, medicines, insecticides, fertilizers, explosives, synthetic fibers, and even food preservatives.  Coal is also used as a fuel and for drying in the paper, cement and glass industries as well as used in gasification and liquefaction technologies, and in the production of activated carbons.

The world’s leading miners of coal are China, the United States, Australia and India.  Leading consumers of coal are China, United States, India, and Russia.  Of the coal mined in the United States, approximately 85 % is used domestically and 15 % is exported overseas, mainly through ports located on the east and gulf coasts.