Colloquium: Clean coal technologies a viable source of energy: experts

Technologies will address the environmental concerns by using coal on long-term basis.


News Desk February 22, 2012



Experts on Tuesday said clean coal technologies are a viable source of energy, said a NUST press release.


These technologies will address the environmental concerns by using coal on long-term basis and would help the country overcome the current energy crisis, experts said while speaking on “Clean Coal Technologies” at the Techtalk programme of the Science Society of the National University of Science and Technology (NUST).

The event aimed at increasing public awareness on the importance of reducing greenhouse gas emissions through the use of low emission, clean coal technologies and their varying applications to implement solution focused mechanisms and strategies for government, society and industry.

Guest speakers of the colloquium were Dr Ashraf Tahir and Engr Shahid Ansari from the School of Chemical and Materials Engineering, NUST.

Dr Tahir’s professional career spans over a period of 39 years which includes numerous designations as well as several research papers, one of them presented at the 10th International Symposium on Coal Bed Methane/Coal Mine Methane held at Beijing, China in October 2010.

Engr Ansari is also a distinguished patent examiner and lecturer with several projects and research papers associated to his name including a paper on economic feasibility of biogas plant.

The speakers gave an insight into state-of-the-art approach to Fischer Tropsch (FT) technology and explained the basic principles that are required to understand the application of the technology, gasification of coal and synthetic gas.

They stressed that the greatest opportunity for the coal industry to reinvent itself as a clean power source lies in the maturation and deployment of carbon capture and FT technologies.

When burned, coal releases carbon dioxide and other emissions in flue gas. Gasification avoids burning coal altogether.

With integrated gasification combined cycle systems, steam and hot pressurised air or oxygen combine with coal in a reaction that forces carbon molecules apart. The resulting synthetic gas, a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen, is then cleaned and burned in a gas turbine to make electricity.

According to the speakers, with coal playing a key role in Pakistan’s energy mix, low emissions coal technology may become an option in the long-term.

The development and adoption of these technologies has increased. The global value of electricity generation using clean coal technologies was $63 billion in 2010 and is expected to grow to $85 billion by 2020.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 22nd, 2012.

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