Key Properties and Applications of Coal Products
Coal is widely used all over the world. Known as one of the most important fossil fuels, coal holds many applications like production of heat, firing industrial generators, producing cast iron etc. It can likewise be created in the business to get items like coke, tar and coal gas. These side-effects are gainful to us as well.
Coke: Coke is a high-carbon item obtained by the ruinous refining of coal. The measure of carbon content in coke is high to the point that it is supposed to be a nearly unadulterated type of carbon. Coke is greyish-dark in shading and is a hard, permeable strong.
Uses: The most well-known utilization of coke is as a fuel for ovens, heaters and blacksmithing. It is once in a while favoured over coal since consuming coke delivers next to no smoke. It is likewise used to create iron in an impact heater. Coke is utilized to produce steel and numerous different materials.
Coal Tar: It is acquired as a result during the time spent creation coke. In spite of the fact that its shading is equivalent to coke, tar is an exceptionally gooey fluid. It additionally has a very terrible smell.
Uses: Coal tar is broadly used to fabricate paints, scents, engineered colours, photographic material, medications and explosives. It tends to be used to make bug sprays and pesticides. Naphthalene balls that are ordinarily used to fend moths off are produced using tar. Coal tar is an element hostile to dandruff and lice-repulsing shampoos, cleansers and salves.
Coal Gas: This is likewise gotten as a side-effect while creating coke, and once more, much the same as tar, its smell isn't extremely lovely. It is a profoundly combustible gas as its primary part is methane. In this manner, if not directed cautiously, it can blend with air bringing about blasts.
Uses: It is predominantly utilized as a fuel in enterprises arranged close to coal preparing plants. Prior, it was utilized as a wellspring of light. In the year 1820, it was utilized in London just because of road lighting. Presently, it is all the more ordinarily used to give warmth to residential and mechanical purposes.
Coke - Definition
It is an extreme, permeable and dark substance. It is a practically unadulterated type of carbon. Coke is utilized in the assembling of steel and in the extraction of numerous metals.
Properties:
The most significant properties of coke are debris and sulphur content, which are directly reliant on the coal utilized for creation. Coke with less debris and sulphur content is exceptionally estimated available.
Coal Tar - Definition
It is a dark, thick fluid with a terrible smell. It is a blend of around 200 substances.
Properties:
Coal tar is utilized as beginning materials for assembling different substances utilized in regular daily existence and in industry, similar to manufactured colours, drugs, explosives, aromas, plastics, paints and so on.
Coal Gas - Definition
Coal gas is acquired during the handling of coal to get coke.
Properties:
It is utilized as a fuel in numerous enterprises arranged close to the coal handling plants.
FAQs on Coal Products: Types, Uses, and Significance
1. What are the three main products obtained from the processing of coal?
The three main products obtained from coal are coke, coal tar, and coal gas. These are produced through a process called the destructive distillation of coal, which involves heating coal to very high temperatures in the absence of air.
2. What is coke and what are its key properties?
Coke is a tough, porous, and black substance that is considered an almost pure form of carbon. Its key properties make it highly valuable for industrial use:
- It is a smokeless fuel, burning cleanly without producing much smoke.
- It possesses a very high calorific value, meaning it generates a large amount of heat.
- It acts as an excellent reducing agent, which is critical for extracting metals from their ores.
3. Why is coke often preferred over raw coal in industrial furnaces?
Coke is preferred over raw coal in industrial processes like metal smelting for two primary reasons. Firstly, it burns at a higher, more consistent temperature and produces significantly less smoke. Secondly, its high purity as a carbon source prevents the contamination of the final metal product. This purity also makes it a more efficient reducing agent for converting metal oxides into pure metals in a blast furnace.
4. What is coal tar, and why is it considered such a valuable industrial material?
Coal tar is a thick, black, viscous liquid with a distinctively unpleasant smell, obtained as a by-product of producing coke from coal. Its value comes from the fact that it is not a single substance but a complex mixture of over 200 different chemical compounds. These compounds can be separated and used as essential raw materials for manufacturing a vast range of synthetic products.
5. Can you give some examples of everyday items derived from coal tar?
Yes, many common products originate from the chemicals extracted from coal tar. Some prominent examples include:
- Naphthalene balls used to protect clothes from moths and other insects.
- Synthetic dyes and pigments used in paints and textiles.
- Plastics, synthetic fibres, and perfumes.
- Essential ingredients for pharmaceuticals and drugs.
- Materials for roofing and road surfacing.
6. How does the 'destructive distillation' of coal differ from simply burning it?
The key difference lies in the presence of oxygen. Burning coal (combustion) is a chemical reaction that occurs in the presence of oxygen, producing mainly ash, carbon dioxide, heat, and light. In contrast, destructive distillation is the process of heating coal to a high temperature in the complete absence of oxygen. This breaks down the coal into valuable new substances (coke, coal tar, coal gas) instead of just burning it away.
7. What is coal gas and what is its primary use?
Coal gas is a flammable gaseous fuel, primarily composed of hydrogen, methane, and carbon monoxide, that is produced during the processing of coal to get coke. While it was historically used for street lighting in the 19th century, its main use today is as a fuel in various industries, particularly those located near coal processing plants, due to its high heating value.
8. Why is coal called a 'fossil fuel' and what is its modern significance?
Coal is called a fossil fuel because it was formed from the compressed remains of ancient plants and vegetation that lived millions of years ago. These organisms were buried under layers of sediment, and the immense heat and pressure over geological time transformed them into coal. Its modern significance is enormous; it is a primary fuel for generating electricity in thermal power plants worldwide and is the source of coke, which is indispensable for the steel manufacturing industry.
