Can coal be utilized in a clean and efficient manner after all? There’s an answer now

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Can coal be utilized in a clean and efficient manner after all? Answer found. Author/Source: Coal Chemical Industry Information Network. Date: 2019-10-12. Clicks: 55. Can coal be utilized in a clean and efficient manner? Amid the broader trend of energy transition, calls for phasing out coal grow louder and louder, sparking ongoing debates. Regarding the aforementioned key question, Xie Kechang, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and an expert in coal chemical engineering, replied that it is \"absolutely possible\". “China’s energy structure and supply-demand dynamics make it imperative to develop modern coal chemical industry; coal that is utilized in a clean and efficient manner can be considered a clean energy source. Research by the Chinese Academy of Engineering suggests that advancing the energy revolution cannot be achieved overnight, but rather must take place in stages. Prior to 2020, it was a period for optimizing the energy structure, during which fossil fuels, including coal, were utilized in a clean, efficient, and sustainable manner ； The period from 2020 to 2030 will be a time of transformation in the energy sector; during this time, the increase in primary energy required for GDP growth will rely mainly on non-fossil energy sources, leading to a significant improvement in the energy structure ； The period from 2030 to 2050 will be the stage for shaping the energy revolution, giving rise to a new energy system characterized by rationalized demand, green development, diversified supply, intelligent distribution, and efficient utilization. “By 2020, the consumption ratios of coal, oil and gas, and non-fossil energy were 6:2.5:1.5, with the total energy consumption amounting to about 5 billion tons of standard coal. To this end, it is necessary to actively phase out outdated production capacity, increase the degree of centralized coal utilization, and achieve clean and low-carbon development in energy consumption. ”Xie Kechang provided further clarification. During the period of optimizing the energy structure, how should coal be utilized effectively? Xie Kechang said that transforming from an inefficient and polluting industry to a modern coal chemical industry that is efficient, clean, and water-saving is one of the desired directions. “In the past, coal chemical industries were heavily criticized for their high emissions and high energy consumption. The latest statistics show that its main levels of consumption and emissions have **decreased; for example, coal consumption accounts for only 2.6% of the national total, while water consumption is 4‰. The emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are 0.7% and 0.6% respectively. ” Xie Kechang believes that by adhering to clean development initiatives, the modern coal chemical industry can achieve clean and efficient growth. These measures include always giving priority to environmental protection standards, actively developing efficient technologies for pollutant removal, and accelerating the formulation of scientific and comprehensive clean production standards as well as environmental protection policies. At the same time, a scientific layout is established on the basis of a comprehensive consideration of the atmospheric, aquatic, and soil environments, covering various aspects such as a clean production management system for project approval, full-process supervision, and post-evaluation. “China’s energy structure and supply-demand dynamics make it imperative to develop modern coal chemical industry. Modern coal chemical industry represents an effective way for the clean and efficient utilization of coal, and we can confidently say that coal that is utilized in a clean and efficient manner is considered a clean energy source. ”Xie Kechang said. “Replacing oil and natural gas with coal has shown significant results; under optimistic scenarios, it is expected to reduce reliance on oil and natural gas by 4.6 and 8.7 percentage points respectively by 2030. Considering the current situation, Xie Kechang highly affirmed the achievements made in the development of the modern coal chemical industry. “At present, industrial demonstration and production bases have been basically established; a considerable portion of the technologies are at the international advanced or leading level, and the operational efficiency of the demonstration and production facilities is continuously improving. Replacing oil and natural gas with coal has proven effective, contributing to **energy security. ” Xie Kechang said that the ways of using coal to replace oil and natural gas can be divided into three categories: Category A substitution involves using coal as a raw material to directly produce fuels that serve as alternatives to oil and gas fuels, such as direct coal liquefaction, indirect coal liquefaction, and coal-based methanol and ethanol fuels. Category B involves the production of organic chemicals using coal as a raw material, to replace those originally made from oil and gas, such as coal-derived olefins, aromatics, ethylene glycol, etc. Category C is also known as functional substitution; for example, electric vehicles powered by coal-fired generation replace passenger cars that use oil as fuel. “In 2017, coal replaced 3.27 billion cubic meters of natural gas, with a substitution efficiency of 61.4%, thereby reducing the country’s dependence on natural gas by 1.4 percentage points. The above three methods combined replaced 31.3 million tons of oil, achieving a substitution efficiency of 61.3%, which reduced that year’s dependence on imported oil by 1.6 percentage points. In other words, without this 1.6%, China’s dependence on imported oil would have exceeded 70% by 2017. ”Xie Kechang said. On this basis, Xie Kechang further divided into three scenarios – assuming constraints such as water resources, environmental capacity, and carbon emission reductions, **the situation in which the development of modern coal chemical industry is restricted is referred to as the “cautious scenario”” ； According to frameworks such as the \"13th Five-Year Plan for Demonstrating Advanced Coal Processing Industries,\" the scenario for orderly development is the \"baseline scenario\"” ； Given the increasing maturity of the industry and the rising level of equipment autonomy, if production scale is expanded, more demonstration units are added, and the operational rate of projects is improved, the industry will be in a \"positive scenario\". “Currently, the modern coal chemical industry is in a favorable scenario, with considerable potential for coal to replace oil and gas. By 2030, it is expected to reduce reliance on oil and gas by 4.6 and 8.7 percentage points respectively, which is certainly no easy task. ”Xie Kechang predicted. “The energy technology revolution is of the utmost importance; without disruptive technologies, it will be difficult to achieve a low-carbon transition relying on fossil fuels. With such a significant responsibility, how can the modern coal chemical industry develop better? In Sheikh Chang’s view, technology is of utmost importance. “The essence of the energy revolution is a revolution in energy conversion, aimed at achieving effective control and efficient transformation of energy, among which the revolution in energy technology is the most important. Without disruptive technologies, a **low-carbon transition relying on fossil fuels will be difficult to achieve. ”Xie Kechang pointed out that, building on existing achievements, China’s modern coal chemical industry still faces the issue of low efficiency in energy utilization and resource conversion. Due to an abundance of primary products, there is insufficient development of refined, differentiated, and specialized downstream products; as a result, the comparative advantages are not evident and competitiveness is weak ； Due to differences in technical integration and production management levels, product costs are high, and overall energy efficiency needs to be improved. Xie Kechang emphasized the underlying deficiencies and pointed directly at \"technology\" as the key factor. Xie Kechang believes that breakthroughs are needed in all four categories of technologies involved in the industry: common key technologies, cutting-edge leading technologies, modern engineering technologies, and disruptive technologies. Taking the common challenges in catalyst development as an example, Xie Kechang pointed out that no reaction process in modern coal chemical projects can proceed without catalysts. However, at present, the use of catalysts remains primarily experimental in nature, and targeted design – that is, designing catalysts based on the desired products and production processes – has not yet been achieved. Furthermore, among the most challenging disruptive technologies, methods such as the one-step production of bulk chemical products or high-value specialty fine chemicals via highly selective synthesis of syngas, and the conversion of coal into inexpensive biodegradable polyester compounds through highly selective processes, all merit attention and innovation. “Next, oil substitution and downstream oxidized compounds derived from alcohols, ethers, aldehydes, acids, aromatics, and olefins represent reasonable options for the development of modern coal chemical products. ”Guided by this approach, Xie Kechang suggests that modern coal chemical industry within China’s energy system should be developed vigorously by adhering to the principles of modernization, large-scale operation, integrated production based on different quality levels, use of multiple raw materials, standardization, and intelligence, through approaches such as efficient utilization, combined substitution, complementary use of various energy sources, and large-scale application.