40
An
Economic Process for Coal Liquefaction to Liquid Fuels—Specialties
Group, Inc., 1128 University Drive, Morrisville, PA 19067; 732-274-0050
Dr.
Partha Sarathi Ganguli, Principal Investigator, p.ganguli@att.net
Dr.
Partha Sarathi Ganguli, Business Official, p.ganguli@att.net
DOE
Grant No. DE-FG02-05ER84256
Amount:
$750,000
Currently,
direct-coal liquefaction processes produce limited yields of moderate-quality
liquid products, which are not cost-effective compared to petroleum-based liquid
fuels. This project will develop a
novel catalytic process for the liquefaction of coal into liquid fuels. Phase
I provided a proof-of-concept regarding the ability of the catalyst and the
processing technology to produce high quality liquid fuels with high yields.
Phase II will: (1) improve
and optimize the catalyst system; (2) improve and optimize the reactor system
developed in Phase I; and (3) study the coal liquefaction process in a
mini-pilot-plant-scale processing unit, in order to demonstrate technical
feasibility, collect data for a commercial design and economic feasibility
study, and optimize the process to obtain high yield of high quality liquid
product.
Commercial
Applications and other Benefits as
described by the awardee: The
coal liquefaction process should enable a coal-based refinery to produce
transportation fuels for less than $25 per barrel. The
low cost of the reactor system and high yield of liquid fuels would make the
process cost effective. If
successfully implemented, the technology should have a profound impact on the
energy industry, creating energy-production jobs in the