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88-662: Wallerawang Power Station was a thermal coal power station , located near Wallerawang , in the Central Tablelands region of New South Wales , Australia. The power station was equipped with two turbo-alternators of 500 megawatts (670,000 hp) each, supplied by CA Parsons & Company of Newcastle-upon-Tyne , England. Production commenced in May 1957. In July 2013, EnergyAustralia acquired Wallerawang Power Station, along with Mount Piper Power Station , from Delta Electricity for $ 160 million. Due to dwindling demand,

176-512: A cyclothem . Cyclothems are thought to have their origin in glacial cycles that produced fluctuations in sea level , which alternately exposed and then flooded large areas of continental shelf. The woody tissue of plants is composed mainly of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Modern peat is mostly lignin, with a content of cellulose and hemicellulose ranging from 5% to 40%. Various other organic compounds, such as waxes and nitrogen- and sulfur-containing compounds, are also present. Lignin has

264-468: A blast wave. A piece of paper (made from wood ) catches on fire quite easily. A heavy oak desk is much harder to ignite, even though the wood fibre is the same in all three materials. Common sense (and indeed scientific consensus until the mid-1700s) would seem to suggest that material "disappears" when burned, as only the ash is left. Further scientific research has found that conservation of mass holds for chemical reactions. Antoine Lavoisier , one of

352-518: A building is subject to the local fire code, which is ordinarily enforced by the local fire prevention officer. For an Authority Having Jurisdiction , combustibility is defined by the local code. In the National Building Code of Canada , it is defined as follows: BS 476-4:1970 defines a test for combustibility in which a technician heats three specimens of a material in a furnace. Combustibile materials are those for which any of

440-553: A burning match, and spread flame rapidly. The technical definitions vary between countries so the United Nations created the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals , which defines the flash point temperature of flammable liquids as between 0 and 140 °F (60 °C) and combustible liquids between 140 °F (60 °C) and 200 °F (93 °C). Flammability

528-796: A comprehensive set of rules on combustible dust. When suspended in air (or any oxidizing environment), the fine particles of combustible dust present a potential for explosions. Accumulated dust , even when not suspended in air, remains a fire hazard. The National Fire Protection Association (U.S.) specifically addresses the prevention of fires and dust explosions in agricultural and food products facilities in NFPA Code section 61, and other industries in NFPA Code sections 651–664. Collectors designed to reduce airborne dust account for more than 40 percent of all dust explosions. Other important processes are grinding and pulverizing , transporting powders, filing silos and containers (which produces powder), and

616-466: A flash of fire when ignited by an external source. A lower flash point indicates higher flammability. Materials with flash points below 100  °F (38  °C ) are regulated in the United States by OSHA as potential workplace hazards . The flame point of a material is a temperature value at which sustained flame can be supported on the material once ignited by an external source. Once

704-488: A large market, manufacturers meet TB 117 in products that they distribute across the United States. The proliferation of flame retardants, and especially halogenated organic flame retardants, in furniture across the United States is strongly linked to TB 117. When it became apparent that the risk-benefit ratio of this approach was unfavorable and industry had used falsified documentation (i.e. see David Heimbach ) for

792-445: A liquid, which varies with its temperature, is a measure of how much the vapor of the liquid tends to concentrate in the surrounding atmosphere as the liquid evaporates. Vapor pressure is a major determinant of the flash point and flame point, with higher vapor pressures leading to lower flash points and higher flammability ratings. The International Code Council (ICC) developed fire code requirements to provide adequate protection to

880-417: A process called carbonization . Carbonization proceeds primarily by dehydration , decarboxylation , and demethanation. Dehydration removes water molecules from the maturing coal via reactions such as Decarboxylation removes carbon dioxide from the maturing coal: while demethanation proceeds by reaction such as In these formulas, R represents the remainder of a cellulose or lignin molecule to which

968-552: A range of concentrations. In addition to wood, combustible dusts include metals , especially magnesium, titanium and aluminum, as well as other carbon-based dusts . There are at least 140 known substances that produce combustible dust. While the particles in a combustible dusts may be of any size, normally they have a diameter of less than 420  μm . As of 2012 , the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration has yet to adopt

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1056-448: A regulated manner between from 2012 to June 2015. The carbon pricing scheme was discontinued by new federal government officials in 2014. It was expected that these measures would have impacted on emissions from power stations. Wallerawang Power Station has emitted the following selected list of pollutants: Coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock , formed as rock strata called coal seams . Coal

1144-566: A result of burning coal. The Rudd government announced the introduction of a Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme to help combat climate change that was expected to commence in 2010, however a bill to introduce the cap and trade system was defeated on the floor of the Parliament . The subsequent Australian Renewable Energy Agency Bill, 2011 (Cth) was enacted and established an emissions trading scheme to price carbon in Australia in

1232-540: A switch in fuels happened in London in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. Historian Ruth Goodman has traced the socioeconomic effects of that switch and its later spread throughout Britain and suggested that its importance in shaping the industrial adoption of coal has been previously underappreciated. The development of the Industrial Revolution led to the large-scale use of coal, as

1320-561: A tenth. Indonesia and Australia export the most, followed by Russia . The word originally took the form col in Old English , from reconstructed Proto-Germanic * kula ( n ), from Proto-Indo-European root * g ( e ) u-lo- "live coal". Germanic cognates include the Old Frisian kole , Middle Dutch cole , Dutch kool , Old High German chol , German Kohle and Old Norse kol . Irish gual

1408-403: A weight basis. This composition reflects partly the composition of the precursor plants. The second main fraction of coal is ash, an undesirable, noncombustable mixture of inorganic minerals. The composition of ash is often discussed in terms of oxides obtained after combustion in air: Of particular interest is the sulfur content of coal, which can vary from less than 1% to as much as 4%. Most of

1496-406: A weight composition of about 54% carbon, 6% hydrogen, and 30% oxygen, while cellulose has a weight composition of about 44% carbon, 6% hydrogen, and 49% oxygen. Bituminous coal has a composition of about 84.4% carbon, 5.4% hydrogen, 6.7% oxygen, 1.7% nitrogen, and 1.8% sulfur, on a weight basis. The low oxygen content of coal shows that coalification removed most of the oxygen and much of the hydrogen

1584-636: Is also a cognate via the Indo-European root. The conversion of dead vegetation into coal is called coalification . At various times in the geologic past, the Earth had dense forests in low-lying areas. In these wetlands, the process of coalification began when dead plant matter was protected from oxidation , usually by mud or acidic water, and was converted into peat . The resulting peat bogs , which trapped immense amounts of carbon, were eventually deeply buried by sediments. Then, over millions of years,

1672-481: Is also important in processes that produce combustible substances as a by-product . Special precautions are usually required for substances that are easily combustible. These measures may include installation of fire sprinklers or storage remote from possible sources of ignition. Substances with low combustibility may be selected for construction where the fire risk must be reduced, such as apartment buildings, houses, or offices. If combustible resources are used there

1760-429: Is burned in a turbine). Hot exhaust gases from the turbine are used to raise steam in a heat recovery steam generator which powers a supplemental steam turbine . The overall plant efficiency when used to provide combined heat and power can reach as much as 94%. IGCC power plants emit less local pollution than conventional pulverized coal-fueled plants. Other ways to use coal are as coal-water slurry fuel (CWS), which

1848-603: Is entirely vertical; however, metamorphism may cause lateral changes of rank, irrespective of depth. For example, some of the coal seams of the Madrid, New Mexico coal field were partially converted to anthracite by contact metamorphism from an igneous sill while the remainder of the seams remained as bituminous coal. The earliest recognized use is from the Shenyang area of China where by 4000 BC Neolithic inhabitants had begun carving ornaments from black lignite. Coal from

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1936-515: Is greater chance of fire accidents and deaths. Fire resistant substances are preferred for building materials and furnishings. A non-combustible material is a substance that does not ignite, burn, support combustion, or release flammable vapors when subject to fire or heat, in the form in which it is used and under conditions anticipated. Any solid substance complying with either of two sets of passing criteria listed in Section 8 of ASTM E 136 when

2024-455: Is made when metallurgical coal (also known as coking coal ) is baked in an oven without oxygen at temperatures as high as 1,000 °C, driving off the volatile constituents and fusing together the fixed carbon and residual ash. Metallurgical coke is used as a fuel and as a reducing agent in smelting iron ore in a blast furnace . The carbon monoxide produced by its combustion reduces hematite (an iron oxide ) to iron. Pig iron , which

2112-409: Is more abundant, and anthracite. The % carbon in coal follows the order anthracite > bituminous > lignite > brown coal. The fuel value of coal varies in the same order. Some anthracite deposits contain pure carbon in the form of graphite . For bituminous coal, the elemental composition on a dry, ash-free basis of 84.4% carbon, 5.4% hydrogen, 6.7% oxygen, 1.7% nitrogen, and 1.8% sulfur, on

2200-432: Is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements , chiefly hydrogen , sulfur , oxygen , and nitrogen . Coal is a type of fossil fuel , formed when dead plant matter decays into peat which is converted into coal by the heat and pressure of deep burial over millions of years. Vast deposits of coal originate in former wetlands called coal forests that covered much of the Earth's tropical land areas during

2288-507: Is now the accepted standard in American English and British English. Antonyms of "flammable" or "inflammable" include: non-flammable , non-inflammable , incombustible , non-combustible , not flammable , and fireproof . Flammable applies to combustible materials that ignite easily and thus are more dangerous and more highly regulated. Less easily ignited less-vigorously burning materials are combustible . For example, in

2376-520: Is of concern as cigarettes and candle accidents can trigger domestic fires. In 1975, California began implementing Technical Bulletin 117 (TB 117), which required that materials such as polyurethane foam used to fill furniture be able to withstand a small open flame, equivalent to a candle, for at least 12 seconds. In polyurethane foam, furniture manufacturers typically meet TB 117 with additive halogenated organic flame retardants . No other U.S. states had similar standards, but because California has such

2464-425: Is the ease with which a combustible substance can be ignited, causing fire or combustion or even an explosion. The degree of difficulty required to cause the combustion of a substance is quantified through fire testing . Internationally, a variety of test protocols exist to quantify flammability. The ratings achieved are used in building codes , insurance requirements, fire codes and other regulations governing

2552-418: Is the most flammable synthetic fiber. A fire test can be conducted to determine the degree of flammability. Test standards used to make this determination but are not limited to the following: Combustibility is a measure of how easily a substance bursts into flame, through fire or combustion . This is an important property to consider when a substance is used for construction or is being stored. It

2640-472: Is too rich in dissolved carbon, is also produced. Combustible The degree of flammability in air depends largely upon the volatility of the material - this is related to its composition-specific vapour pressure , which is temperature dependent. The quantity of vapour produced can be enhanced by increasing the surface area of the material forming a mist or dust. Take wood as an example. Finely divided wood dust can undergo explosive flames and produce

2728-452: Is used as fuel. 27.6% of world energy was supplied by coal in 2017 and Asia used almost three-quarters of it. Other large-scale applications also exist. The energy density of coal is roughly 24 megajoules per kilogram (approximately 6.7 kilowatt-hours per kg). For a coal power plant with a 40% efficiency, it takes an estimated 325 kg (717 lb) of coal to power a 100 W lightbulb for one year. In 2022, 68% of global coal use

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2816-715: The Bronze Age (3000–2000 BC), where it formed part of funeral pyres . In Roman Britain , with the exception of two modern fields, "the Romans were exploiting coals in all the major coalfields in England and Wales by the end of the second century AD". Evidence of trade in coal, dated to about AD 200, has been found at the Roman settlement at Heronbridge , near Chester ; and in the Fenlands of East Anglia , where coal from

2904-625: The Fish River system, causing concern that the generating facility would be forced to close. Oberon Shire was also concerned about the level of potable water available from the Oberon Dam , a water cooling source for Wallerawang Power Station. A report from Carbon Monitoring for Action estimated that the Wallerawang Power Station emitted approximately 6,500,000 tonnes (6,400,000 long tons) of CO 2 each year as

2992-521: The Fushun mine in northeastern China was used to smelt copper as early as 1000 BC. Marco Polo , the Italian who traveled to China in the 13th century, described coal as "black stones ... which burn like logs", and said coal was so plentiful, people could take three hot baths a week. In Europe, the earliest reference to the use of coal as fuel is from the geological treatise On Stones (Lap. 16) by

3080-473: The Imperial Sugar Company's plant at Port Wentworth, Georgia , resulting in thirteen deaths. A material's flash point is a metric of how easy it is to ignite the vapor of the material as it evaporates into the atmosphere . It is defined as the lowest material temperature required for fuel oils in the materials to begin to give off flammable vapors in the quantity high enough to support

3168-607: The Midlands was transported via the Car Dyke for use in drying grain. Coal cinders have been found in the hearths of villas and Roman forts , particularly in Northumberland , dated to around AD 400. In the west of England, contemporary writers described the wonder of a permanent brazier of coal on the altar of Minerva at Aquae Sulis (modern day Bath ), although in fact easily accessible surface coal from what became

3256-728: The Somerset coalfield was in common use in quite lowly dwellings locally. Evidence of coal's use for iron -working in the city during the Roman period has been found. In Eschweiler , Rhineland , deposits of bituminous coal were used by the Romans for the smelting of iron ore . No evidence exists of coal being of great importance in Britain before about AD 1000, the High Middle Ages . Coal came to be referred to as "seacoal" in

3344-491: The coal gap in the Permian–Triassic extinction event , where coal is rare. Favorable geography alone does not explain the extensive Carboniferous coal beds. Other factors contributing to rapid coal deposition were high oxygen levels, above 30%, that promoted intense wildfires and formation of charcoal that was all but indigestible by decomposing organisms; high carbon dioxide levels that promoted plant growth; and

3432-458: The occupancies as originally intended. In other words, if a portion of a building were designed as an apartment , one could not suddenly load it with flammable liquids and turn it into a gas storage facility, because the fire load and smoke development in that one apartment would be so immense as to overtax the active fire protection as well as the passive fire protection means for the building. The handling and use of flammable substances inside

3520-447: The steam engine took over from the water wheel . In 1700, five-sixths of the world's coal was mined in Britain. Britain would have run out of suitable sites for watermills by the 1830s if coal had not been available as a source of energy. In 1947 there were some 750,000 miners in Britain, but the last deep coal mine in the UK closed in 2015. A grade between bituminous coal and anthracite

3608-407: The 13th century; the wharf where the material arrived in London was known as Seacoal Lane, so identified in a charter of King Henry III granted in 1253. Initially, the name was given because much coal was found on the shore, having fallen from the exposed coal seams on cliffs above or washed out of underwater coal outcrops, but by the time of Henry VIII , it was understood to derive from the way it

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3696-596: The Carboniferous, and suggested that climatic and tectonic factors were a more plausible explanation, reconstruction of ancestral enzymes by phylogenetic analysis corroborated a hypothesis that lignin degrading enzymes appeared in fungi approximately 200 MYa. One likely tectonic factor was the Central Pangean Mountains , an enormous range running along the equator that reached its greatest elevation near this time. Climate modeling suggests that

3784-598: The Central Pangean Mountains contributed to the deposition of vast quantities of coal in the late Carboniferous. The mountains created an area of year-round heavy precipitation, with no dry season typical of a monsoon climate. This is necessary for the preservation of peat in coal swamps. Coal is known from Precambrian strata, which predate land plants. This coal is presumed to have originated from residues of algae. Sometimes coal seams (also known as coal beds) are interbedded with other sediments in

3872-577: The Greek scientist Theophrastus (c. 371–287 BC): Among the materials that are dug because they are useful, those known as anthrakes [coals] are made of earth, and, once set on fire, they burn like charcoal [anthrakes]. They are found in Liguria ;... and in Elis as one approaches Olympia by the mountain road; and they are used by those who work in metals. Outcrop coal was used in Britain during

3960-509: The Latin inflammāre = "to set fire to", where the Latin preposition "in-" means "in" as in "indoctrinate", rather than "not" as in "invisible" and "ineligible". The word "inflammable" may be erroneously thought to mean "non-flammable". The erroneous usage of the word "inflammable" is a significant safety hazard . Therefore, since the 1950s, efforts to put forward the use of "flammable" in place of "inflammable" were accepted by linguists, and it

4048-437: The United States flammable liquids , by definition, have a flash point below 100 °F (38 °C)—where combustible liquids have a flash point above 100 °F (38 °C). Flammable solids are solids that are readily combustible, or may cause or contribute to fire through friction. Readily combustible solids are powdered , granular, or pasty substances that easily ignite by brief contact with an ignition source, such as

4136-500: The building and occupants. These codes specify the combustibility rating for materials, the entrance and exit requirements, as well as active fire protection requirements, along with numerous other things. In the U.S. other agencies have also developed building codes that specify combustibility ratings such as state and/or county governing bodies. Following the requirements of these fire codes are crucial for higher occupancy buildings. For existing buildings, fire codes focus on maintaining

4224-455: The change into account. Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals uses a four category system to classify flammable liquids using flash point and boiling point temperature. This system is used internationally to evaluate and sort substances in industrial applications, workplaces and products distributed to consumers. Prior to 2012, OSHA's classification of flammable and combustible liquids in regulation 1910.106,

4312-810: The degree of flammability and combustibility in accordance with the German DIN 4102. DIN 4102, as well as its British cousin BS 476 include for testing of passive fire protection systems , as well as some of its constituent materials. The following are the categories in order of degree of combustibility and flammability: A more recent industrial standard is the European EN 13501-1 - Fire classification of construction products and building elements—which roughly replaces A2 with A2/B, B1 with C, B2 with D/E and B3 with F. B3 or F rated materials may not be used in building unless combined with another material that reduces

4400-571: The environment , causing premature death and illness, and it is the largest anthropogenic source of carbon dioxide contributing to climate change . Fourteen billion tonnes of carbon dioxide were emitted by burning coal in 2020, which is 40% of total fossil fuel emissions and over 25% of total global greenhouse gas emissions . As part of worldwide energy transition , many countries have reduced or eliminated their use of coal power . The United Nations Secretary General asked governments to stop building new coal plants by 2020. Global coal use

4488-430: The evolution of the first trees . But bacteria and fungi did not immediately evolve the ability to decompose lignin, so the wood did not fully decay but became buried under sediment, eventually turning into coal. About 300 million years ago, mushrooms and other fungi developed this ability, ending the main coal-formation period of earth's history. Although some authors pointed at some evidence of lignin degradation during

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4576-519: The factors involved in coalification, temperature is much more important than either pressure or time of burial. Subbituminous coal can form at temperatures as low as 35 to 80 °C (95 to 176 °F) while anthracite requires a temperature of at least 180 to 245 °C (356 to 473 °F). Although coal is known from most geologic periods , 90% of all coal beds were deposited in the Carboniferous and Permian periods. Paradoxically, this

4664-528: The first of the two generating units had been mothballed in January 2013, and the second in April 2014. In November 2014, EnergyAustralia announced that it would permanently close Wallerawang due to ongoing reduced energy demand, lack of access to competitively priced coal and the power station's high operating costs. EnergyAustralia began the process of removing useful equipment from the station in 2015. The plant

4752-507: The flame point of a material is reached, it produces enough fuel vapors or oils to support continuous burning. The lower flammability limit or lower explosive limit (LFL/LEL) represents the lowest air to fuel vapor concentration required for combustion to take place when ignited by an external source, for any particular chemical. Any concentration lower than this could not produce a flame or result in combustion. The upper flammability limit or upper explosive limit (UFL/UEL) represents

4840-412: The flame products (ash, water, carbon dioxide, and other gases). Lavoisier used the experimental fact that some metals gained mass when they burned to support his ideas (because those chemical reactions capture oxygen atoms into solid compounds rather than gaseous water). Historically, flammable , inflammable and combustible meant capable of burning . The word "inflammable" came through French from

4928-498: The form of iron pyrite (FeS 2 ). Being a dense mineral, it can be removed from coal by mechanical means, e.g. by froth flotation . Some sulfate occurs in coal, especially weathered samples. It is not volatilized and can be removed by washing. Minor components include: As minerals, Hg, As, and Se are not problematic to the environment, especially since they are only trace components. They become however mobile (volatile or water-soluble) when these minerals are combusted. Most coal

5016-475: The hazard posed by a substance during an emergency, such as a spill. In addition to GHS, flammability classifications are incorporated into various systems designed for communicating physical and health hazards in workplaces; such as American Coatings Association's Hazardous Materials Identification System (HMIS) and Lab Safety Supply's Hazardous Material Identification Guide (HMIG). Flammable substances include, but are not limited to: Flammability of furniture

5104-475: The heat and pressure of deep burial caused the loss of water, methane and carbon dioxide and increased the proportion of carbon. The grade of coal produced depended on the maximum pressure and temperature reached, with lignite (also called "brown coal") produced under relatively mild conditions, and sub-bituminous coal , bituminous coal , or anthracite coal (also called "hard coal" or "black coal") produced in turn with increasing temperature and pressure. Of

5192-431: The highest air to fuel vapor concentration at which combustion can take place when ignited by an external source. Any fuel-air mixture higher than this would be too concentrated to result in combustion. The values existing between these two limits represent the flammable or explosive range. Within this threshold, give an external ignition source, combustion of the particular fuel would likely happen. The vapor pressure of

5280-431: The increasing tendency of the anthracite to break with a conchoidal fracture , similar to the way thick glass breaks. As geological processes apply pressure to dead biotic material over time, under suitable conditions, its metamorphic grade or rank increases successively into: There are several international standards for coal. The classification of coal is generally based on the content of volatiles . However

5368-518: The late Carboniferous ( Pennsylvanian ) and Permian times. Coal is used primarily as a fuel. While coal has been known and used for thousands of years, its usage was limited until the Industrial Revolution . With the invention of the steam engine , coal consumption increased. In 2020, coal supplied about a quarter of the world's primary energy and over a third of its electricity . Some iron and steel -making and other industrial processes burn coal. The extraction and burning of coal damages

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5456-521: The local area, delivered by private road. 75% of the coal comes from the Centennial Coal owned Angus Place colliery . Wallerawang Power Station drew its cooling water from Lake Wallace and Thompson's Creek dam, fresh water lakes on the Coxs River . Water from Lake Lyell and mine dewatering projects can also supply water in times of shortage. In 2007 and in 2009, water shortages occurred in

5544-556: The mixing and blending of powders. Investigation of 200 dust explosions and fires, between 1980 and 2005, indicated approximately 100 fatalities and 600 injuries. In January 2003, a polyethylene powder explosion and fire at the West Pharmaceutical Services plant in Kinston, North Carolina resulted in the deaths of six workers and injuries to 38 others. In February 2008 an explosion of sugar dust rocked

5632-453: The morphology and some properties of the original plant. In many coals, individual macerals can be identified visually. Some macerals include: In coalification huminite is replaced by vitreous (shiny) vitrinite . Maturation of bituminous coal is characterized by bitumenization , in which part of the coal is converted to bitumen , a hydrocarbon-rich gel. Maturation to anthracite is characterized by debitumenization (from demethanation) and

5720-405: The most important distinction is between thermal coal (also known as steam coal), which is burnt to generate electricity via steam; and metallurgical coal (also known as coking coal), which is burnt at high temperature to make steel . Hilt's law is a geological observation that (within a small area) the deeper the coal is found, the higher its rank (or grade). It applies if the thermal gradient

5808-407: The nature of Carboniferous forests, which included lycophyte trees whose determinate growth meant that carbon was not tied up in heartwood of living trees for long periods. One theory suggested that about 360 million years ago, some plants evolved the ability to produce lignin , a complex polymer that made their cellulose stems much harder and more woody. The ability to produce lignin led to

5896-455: The number of double bonds between carbon). As carbonization proceeds, aliphatic compounds convert to aromatic compounds . Similarly, aromatic rings fuse into polyaromatic compounds (linked rings of carbon atoms). The structure increasingly resembles graphene , the structural element of graphite. Chemical changes are accompanied by physical changes, such as decrease in average pore size. The macerals are coalified plant parts that retain

5984-406: The pioneers in these early insights, stated: "Nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed." The burning of a solid material may appear to lose weight if the mass of combustion gases (such as carbon dioxide and water vapor ) are not taken into account. The original mass of flammable material and the mass of the oxygen consumed (typically from the surrounding air) equals the mass of

6072-456: The pre-combustion treatment, turbine technology (e.g. supercritical steam generator ) and the age of the plant. A few integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power plants have been built, which burn coal more efficiently. Instead of pulverizing the coal and burning it directly as fuel in the steam-generating boiler, the coal is gasified to create syngas , which is burned in a gas turbine to produce electricity (just like natural gas

6160-427: The reacting groups are attached. Dehydration and decarboxylation take place early in coalification, while demethanation begins only after the coal has already reached bituminous rank. The effect of decarboxylation is to reduce the percentage of oxygen, while demethanation reduces the percentage of hydrogen. Dehydration does both, and (together with demethanation) reduces the saturation of the carbon backbone (increasing

6248-540: The substance is tested in accordance with the procedure specified in ASTM E 136 is considered to be non-combustible. A number of industrial processes produce combustible dust as a by-product. The most common being wood dust . Combustible dust has been defined as: a solid material composed of distinct particles or pieces, regardless of size, shape, or chemical composition, which presents a fire or deflagration hazard when suspended in air or some other oxidizing medium over

6336-399: The sulfur and most of the nitrogen is incorporated into the organic fraction in the form of organosulfur compounds and organonitrogen compounds . This sulfur and nitrogen are strongly bound within the hydrocarbon matrix. These elements are released as SO 2 and NO x upon combustion. They cannot be removed, economically at least, otherwise. Some coals contain inorganic sulfur, mainly in

6424-676: The three specimens either: Otherwise, the material is classified as non-combustible. Various countries have tests for determining non-combustibility of materials. Most involve the heating of a specified quantity of the test specimen for a set duration. Usually, the material must not support combustion and must not lose more than a certain amount of mass. As a general rule of thumb, concrete, steel, and ceramics - in other words inorganic substances - pass these tests, so building codes list them as suitable and sometimes even mandate their use in certain applications. In Canada , for instance, firewalls must be made of concrete . Materials can be tested for

6512-403: The use of building materials as well as the storage and handling of highly flammable substances inside and outside of structures and in surface and air transportation. For instance, changing an occupancy by altering the flammability of the contents requires the owner of a building to apply for a building permit to make sure that the overall fire protection design basis of the facility can take

6600-479: The use of flame retardants, California modified TB 117 to require that fabric covering upholstered furniture meet a smolder test replacing the open flame test . Gov. Jerry Brown signed the modified TB117-2013, which became effective in 2014. Lightweight textiles with porous surfaces are the most flammable fabrics. Wool is less flammable than cotton, linen, silk, or viscose ( rayon ). Polyester and nylon resist ignition, and melt rather than catch fire. Acrylic

6688-415: The world's coal-generated electricity. Efforts around the world to reduce the use of coal have led some regions to switch to natural gas and renewable energy . In 2018 coal-fired power station capacity factor averaged 51%, that is they operated for about half their available operating hours. Coke is a solid carbonaceous residue that is used in manufacturing steel and other iron-containing products. Coke

6776-590: Was 8.3 billion tonnes in 2022, and is set to remain at record levels in 2023. To meet the Paris Agreement target of keeping global warming below 2 °C (3.6 °F) coal use needs to halve from 2020 to 2030, and "phasing down" coal was agreed upon in the Glasgow Climate Pact . The largest consumer and importer of coal in 2020 was China , which accounts for almost half the world's annual coal production, followed by India with about

6864-574: Was based on the trading of this commodity. Coal continues to arrive on beaches around the world from both natural erosion of exposed coal seams and windswept spills from cargo ships. Many homes in such areas gather this coal as a significant, and sometimes primary, source of home heating fuel. Coal consists mainly of a black mixture of diverse organic compounds and polymers. Of course, several kinds of coals exist, with variable dark colors and variable compositions. Young coals (brown coal, lignite) are not black. The two main black coals are bituminous, which

6952-510: Was carried to London by sea. In 1257–1259, coal from Newcastle upon Tyne was shipped to London for the smiths and lime -burners building Westminster Abbey . Seacoal Lane and Newcastle Lane, where coal was unloaded at wharves along the River Fleet , still exist. These easily accessible sources had largely become exhausted (or could not meet the growing demand) by the 13th century, when underground extraction by shaft mining or adits

7040-479: Was decommissioned in 1990. Wallerawang C — comprised two 500 megawatts (670,000 hp) units were completed in 1976 and 1980. Due to dwindling energy demand, in January 2013 the NSW government-owned corporation , Delta Electricity , mothballed one of the two remaining units of Wallerawang C for twelve months. The other was also mothballed 15 months later. The coal for Wallerawang Power Station came from mines in

7128-400: Was decommissioned in May 1986. Wallerawang B – comprised two General Electric 60 megawatts (80,000 hp) 2–cylinder turbines with hydrogen cooled generators completed in 1961. Steam was supplied to each generator by a John Thompson boiler at a rate of 270,000 kilograms per hour (600,000 lb/h) at 900 pounds per square inch (6,200 kPa) and 900 °F (482 °C). Wallerawang B

7216-612: Was developed in the Soviet Union , or in an MHD topping cycle . However these are not widely used due to lack of profit. In 2017 38% of the world's electricity came from coal, the same percentage as 30 years previously. In 2018 global installed capacity was 2 TW (of which 1TW is in China) which was 30% of total electricity generation capacity. The most dependent major country is South Africa, with over 80% of its electricity generated by coal; but China alone generates more than half of

7304-408: Was developed. The alternative name was "pitcoal", because it came from mines. Cooking and home heating with coal (in addition to firewood or instead of it) has been done in various times and places throughout human history, especially in times and places where ground-surface coal was available and firewood was scarce, but a widespread reliance on coal for home hearths probably never existed until such

7392-497: Was during the Late Paleozoic icehouse , a time of global glaciation . However, the drop in global sea level accompanying the glaciation exposed continental shelves that had previously been submerged, and to these were added wide river deltas produced by increased erosion due to the drop in base level . These widespread areas of wetlands provided ideal conditions for coal formation. The rapid formation of coal ended with

7480-437: Was finally demolished in 2021 using controlled demolition. Wallerawang A – originally built with four British Thomson-Houston 30 megawatts (40,000 hp) single cylinder generators, completed in 1957–1959. Steam was supplied to each generator by a John Thompson Etaflow boiler at a rate of 150,000 kilograms per hour (330,000 lb/h) at 600 pounds per square inch (4,100 kPa) and 540 °F (282 °C). Wallerawang A

7568-550: Was nearly identical to the National Fire Protective Association (NFPA) Flammable and Combustible Liquids Code , NFPA 30. While no longer used for occupational regulations, NFPA 30's definitions are still commonly used in fire codes and NFPA codes and standards. Other systems for classifications of flammable liquids exist for more specialist applications, such as NFPA 704 , which uses five categories, intended for emergency workers to understand

7656-564: Was once known as "steam coal" as it was widely used as a fuel for steam locomotives . In this specialized use, it is sometimes known as "sea coal" in the United States. Small "steam coal", also called dry small steam nuts (DSSN), was used as a fuel for domestic water heating . Coal played an important role in industry in the 19th and 20th century. The predecessor of the European Union , the European Coal and Steel Community ,

7744-430: Was used for electricity generation. Coal burnt in coal power stations to generate electricity is called thermal coal . It is usually pulverized and then burned in a furnace with a boiler . The furnace heat converts boiler water to steam , which is then used to spin turbines which turn generators and create electricity. The thermodynamic efficiency of this process varies between about 25% and 50% depending on

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