Coal Testing

Coal is one of the primary sources of electricity in India and abroad. It is a non-renewable source of energy. The major contribution towards our country's energy/power requirements comes from combustion of Coal. A substantial quantity of coal has also to be imported from other countries, in order to fulfill the ever-increasing energy demands of our country. Other important uses of coal include manufacturing of Steel, Cement, fertilizers, paper, ceramics, and other industrial items. Coal also finds use as a liquid fuel and as a fuel for domestic/household consumption. Coke is generally formed by destructive distillation of coal, has a higher Carbon content, and it finds use mainly in Steel manufacturing in blast furnaces.
Although there are other sources of energy like petroleum and natural gas, the advantage that Coal offers relative to them is its ease of combustion and the high calorific/heat value associated with it. Coal occurs in four main types or ranks: Lignite or brown coal, bituminous or black coal, anthracite and graphite. These ranks are a result of the geological process that has occurred over time, and they have different physical and chemical properties which can be verified by proper testing techniques.

Importance of Coal Testing

The results of Coal testing are utilized mainly for characterization, commercial grading or assigning ranks, and deciding the utilization for different purposes. There are basically two types of analysis conducted on coal: one is the'Proximate Analysis' and the other is 'Ultimate Analysis'. These tests determine different parameters, and the results from Proximate Analysis determine the rank of Coal and some important indicators related to the commercial value of coal, like heating/Calorific value and application in boilers.Spectro Analytical Labs Pvt. Ltd. conducts testing of Coal, Coke and other fuels as per various national and international standards in the most scrupulous manner ensuring flawless accuracy in the test results.

Some of the Common Tests conducted on Coal include

• Calorific value(Gross/net)
• Proximate analysis- Moisture,Volatile matter, Ash and Fixed Carbon
• Ultimate analysis - C,H, O, N, S and Ash.
• Ash analysis - Al2O3, SiO2, CaO, MgO,TiO2, Na2O, K2O, S etc.,
• Ash Fusion Temperature
• Coke Reactivity
• Hard-grove Grindability Index
• Porosity
• Density
• Angle of Repose
• Reflectivity
• Crucible Swelling Index/Free Swelling Index

Major Equipments Used

• Bomb Calorimeter
• Carbon & Hydrogen determination apparatus
• Proximate Analyzer
• Ash Fusion Temperature apparatus/Ash Fusion Tester