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Treating bituminous coal with ionic liquids to inhibit coal spontaneous combustion

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Abstract

Coal spontaneous combustion (CSC) is an extremely complex physical and chemical reaction between coal and oxygen, and it results in the gradual accumulation of thermal energy that eventually produces conditions that are favorable for combustion. Ionic liquids (ILs) inhibit coal oxidation and reduce the amount of heat that is produced. A synchronous thermal analyzer was used to examine the effects of imidazolium-based ILs on bituminous coal from two sources. The results revealed that with the anion [BF4]−, the inhibiting effect of [BMIM]+ was stronger than that of [EMIM]+. Moreover, with the cation [BMIM]+, the inhibiting effects of [BF4]− were stronger than that of [I]− and [NO3]−. The inhibiting effects of the ILs on CSC were estimated using the Ozawa–Flynn–Wall method, which relates the apparent activation energy to the degree of conversion. The inhibiting effect of [BMIM][BF4] offers a basis for effectively preventing CSC and is favorable for universal application.

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Abbreviations

A :

Pre-exponential factor (min−1)

E a :

Apparent activation energy (J mol−1)

\(f(\alpha )\) :

Differential mechanism function

\(G(\alpha )\) :

Integral mechanism function

\(P(u)\) :

Approximation of the integral temperature (K)

R :

Universal gas constant (8.314 J mol−1 K−1)

r 2 :

Correlation degree

T :

Absolute temperature (K)

T 1 :

Pyrolysis temperature (°C)

T 2 :

Ignition temperature (°C)

T 3 :

Burnout temperature (°C)

t :

Time (min)

\(\alpha\) :

Conversion (%)

\(\beta\) :

Heating rate (°C min−1)

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge Dr. Frank Oreovicz (Retired) at Purdue University (West Lafayette, Indiana, USA) for the brilliant modifications. This work was sponsored by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 5120-4136), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (No. 2016-M-590963), and the Industrial Science and Technology Project of Shaanxi Province, China (No. 2016-GY-192).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Safety Science and Engineering, Xi’an University of Science and Technology, 58, Yanta Mid. Rd, Xi’an, 710054, Shaanxi, People’s Republic of China

    Yang Xiao, Hui-Fei Lü, Xin Yi & Jun Deng

  2. Graduate School of Engineering Science and Technology, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, 123, University Rd., Sec. 3, Douliou, Yunlin, 64002, Taiwan, ROC

    Chi-Min Shu

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  1. Yang Xiao
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Correspondence to Yang Xiao.

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Xiao, Y., Lü, HF., Yi, X. et al. Treating bituminous coal with ionic liquids to inhibit coal spontaneous combustion. J Therm Anal Calorim 135, 2711–2721 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-018-7600-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-018-7600-5

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