Pittsburg and Midway Coal Mining

The Pittsburg and Midway Coal Mining Company provided the SRC-II process products that were used as feeds in these studies. They were produced in the Fort Lewis, Washington, pilot plant from a West Virginia coal (Pittsburg Seam, Blacksville No. 2 Mine of the Consolidated Coal Company). 

The Pittsburg and Midway Coal Mining Company supplied the SRC-II feed. The results reported here were obtained under DOE Contract EF-76-C-01-2315. 

The SRC-II liquid was obtained from the Pittsburg and Midway Coal Mining Co. The liquid was produced from Material Balance Run No. 77 SR-12 on coal from the Pittsburg seam from Consol s Blacksville No. 2 Mine in West Virginia. The middle (177-288° C) and heavy (288-454°C) distillates were blended to the same ratio as produced by the material balance run, e.g., 75.5 percent middle distillate and 24.5 percent heavy distillate. The feed contained 0.23 wt-pct sulfur, 1.06 wt-pct nitrogen and 3.29 wt-pct oxygen and boiled between 185 and 380° C (5-95 percent) by simulated distillation. 

Materials. Samples of SRC II middle and heavy distillates were obtained from the Pittsburg and Midway Coal Mining Company. These were distilled into 50°C boiling point range fractions and labeled as follows MD-2 (150-200°C), MD-3 (200-250°C), MD-4 (250-300°C), HD-2 (300-350°C), HD-3 (350-400°C), and HD-4 (400-450°C). HD-3 and HD-4 could not be used in the apparatus because they contained solids at room temperature. 

Samples of SRC II naphtha, middle distillate, and heavy distillates were provided by Mr. David Schmalzer of the Pittsburg and Midway Coal Mining Company. 

SRC II (Solvent-Refined Coal (SRC) II, Pittsburg and Midway Coal Mining Co.)—hydroliquefaction of coal with slurry recycle, 25.3 wt % on dry Western Kentucky coal, < 10 cP 850°F endpoint. 

The SRC-I process, developed by the Pittsburg Midway Coal Mining Co. in the early 1960s, was not really a hquefaction process rather, it was designed to produce a solid fuel for utility applications. Only enough liquid was produced to keep the process in solvent balance. The bottoms product was subjected to filtration or solvent extraction to remove ash and then solidified to produce a low-ash, low-sulfur substitute for coal. However, the value of the product was not high enough to make this process economically viable. 

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