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What are the uses of thermal coal

The uses of thermal coal include: coal for power generation, coal for general industrial boilers, coal for daily use, coal for building materials, coal for locomotives, coal for metallurgy, etc. In my country, more than 65% of thermal coal consumption is used for thermal power generation. Followed by coal for building materials, accounting for about 20% of thermal coal consumption.


coal for power generation

More than one-third of China’s coal is used for power generation, and the coal consumption for power generation ranks first in the country. The average coal consumption for power generation is about 370g/(kW•h). Power plants use the heat generated by coal to convert thermal energy into electricity. The calorific value is the main factor affecting the technical and economic indicators of the power plant. When the power plant is designed and constructed, a fixed coal supply base is required, and the boiler is designed according to different coal qualities. After it is completed and put into operation, the coal quality meets the boiler design requirements, and the boiler efficiency is fully utilized. The calorific value of coal directly affects the construction investment and production cost of power plants.

General industrial boiler coal

In addition to thermal power plants and large heating boilers, general enterprises and industrial heating boilers have many types, large numbers and scattered distribution, with an annual coal consumption of about 300 million tons. Most of these boilers are layer-bed combustion with low efficiency, and the chain furnace is about 75%. Industrial boilers are designed according to different coal types, ash content, calorific value and volatile content. They are mainly composed of bed combustion, and there are fewer pulverized coal furnaces, and the quality requirements of coal are wider. Industrial boilers use a large amount of coal and have great energy-saving potential, so they should adapt to supply and demand, and effectively utilize and save coal.

living coal

The amount of coal for domestic use is also very large, with annual coal consumption exceeding 200 million tons. Most of them are directly used for civil use, and the coal consumption of urban gas is also increasing year by year. The quality requirements of civil coal are suitable for local conditions. General civil fuel should use anthracite with low volatile content .

coal for building materials

Coal used for building materials consumes more than 100 million tons of coal every year, cement coal consumption is the largest, followed by glass, bricks, tiles and so on. In the cement production process, coal is not only used as fuel, but also as a component in cement, so the quality requirements of coal are very strict. Bricks and tiles do not have strict requirements on coal quality, and only have a lower calorific value.

locomotive coal

The annual coal consumption for locomotives is about 20 million tons. The average coal consumption index of steam locomotive boilers is about 100kg/(10,000 tons·km). The boiler structure and fuel conditions require the use of lump coal, and the coal is required to be flammable and flame retardant.

metallurgical coal

Metallurgical thermal coal is mainly used for sintering and blast furnace injection anthracite, and its annual consumption is less than 10 million tons. Most of them are used for sintering, and injection accounts for about 20%.