Coal - future fuel for thought
2000
Suhaila Abdul Hamid
Coal is a combustible, sedimentary, organic rock (composed primarily of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen) formed from vegetation, which has been consolidated between other rock strata to form coal seams, and altered by the combined effects of microbial action, pressure and heat over a considerable time period. Coal reserves are the world`s most significant fossil fuel resource. At 1996 levels of production, coal reserves are sufficient to last at least 250 years. It is widely recognized that the ready availability of electricity is a basic element in an improved quality of life. Currently, coal provides some 40 % of all the world`s electricity : without electricity there cannot be economic development. It has been suggested that additional quantities of electrical energy will be required as programs are carried out to improve the environment and to maximize the efficiency of energy utilization. Hence, new clean coal technologies (CCTs) have been designed to enhance both the efficiency and the environmental acceptability of coal as a future fuel for thought. By using the Clean Coal Technologies (CCTs) such as Pulverised Fuel (PF), Integrated Coal Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC), British Topping Cycle-Pressurized Fluidised Bed Combustion (BTC-PFBC) and British Topping Cycle-Circulalting Fluidised Bed Combustion (BTC-CFBC) which produce 40 - 50 % less carbon dioxide (CO subscript 2), oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and oxides of sulfur (SOx), coal can now be burnt cleanly throughout the world. CCTs can be applied in Malaysia as our coal are 973.81 million tonnes.
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