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The Karrick process is a low temperature carbonization (LTC) of coal, shale, lignite or any carbonaceous materials. These are heated at 680 °F (360 °C) to 1380 °F (360 °C to 749 °C) in the absence of air to distill out oil and gas. more...
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The process was the work of oil shale technologist Lewis C. Karrick at the U.S. Bureau of Mines in the 1920s.
China has announced high volume commercial coal liquefaction production in late 2007, after a successful trial, starting a process that could rapidly free China from dependency upon external OPEC oil imports. The process is reported to have '60-meter-high cylindrical structures' and to be a direct coal liquefaction process. While lacking formal confirmation, the process described seems identical to the Karrick process, and appears to be a re-engineering, based upon the 1930s patents. At the time of writing (2007) America does not have an equivalent oil self sufficiency strategy in place.
Process
Karrick processing of 1 short ton of coal yields up to 1 barrel of coal tars (12% by weight), richer in lighter hydrocarbons than normal coal tar and suitable for processing into fuels, 3,000 cubic feet (85 m³) of rich fuel gas and 1500 pounds of solid smokeless char or semi-coke (for one metric ton, 0.175 m³ of coal tars, 95 m³ of gas, and 750 kg of semi-coke). Smokeless char can be used for utility boilers and cooking coal in steel smelters, yields more heat than raw coal and can be converted to water gas. Water gas can be converted to oil by the Fischer-Tropsch process. Coal gas from Karrick LTC yields greater energy content than natural gas. Phenolic wastes are used by the chemical industry as feedstock for plastics, etc. Electrical power can be cogenerated at nominal cost. Karrick LTC process generates carbon dioxide. (See "Carbon/CO2 sequestration" in "See also" below).
History
Karrick did not invent coal LTC but perfected it in his now expired patents, issued from 1931 to 1942. Dozens of American facilities had previously produced oil, gas, grease and paraffin from coal, but by 1873, cheap petroleum caused the last coal oil plant to close. America is today experiencing a revival of the art in response to crude oil prices of up to or exceeding $100(USD) per barrel, geopolitical and economic considerations. (See "Fischer-Tropsch process" below)
The Karrick low temperature carbonization process
Comparative
A Karrick LTC pilot plant was constructed at the University of Utah in the 1930s, and below are some findings:
Bergius (HTC) liquefaction is too costly and approximately one-half of the thermal value of coal is destroyed.;
Bergius process requires substantial volumes of water.;
Karrick process, including conversion of the oil to motor fuel, destroys only 25% of the thermal value, or one-half that of the Bergius process.;
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