Frank T. Dulong (Former Employee)

The sulfur content of United States coal can be assessed using a variety of approaches. The sulfur content may be expressed in terms of total sulfur in the coal, pounds of sulfur per million Btu, or sulfur remaining after reduction by coal preparation. In addition, sulfur content may be applied to the demonstrated reserve base or to coal resource estimates. Unfortunately, current data...

In the central Appalachian basin, at least two major climate changes affected sedimentation during the late Paleozoic. Stratigraphically, these two changes are indicated by the distribution of coal beds, the variation in coal quality, and the variation in rock lithologies. In latest Mississippian or earliest Pennsylvanian time, the climate changed from dry-seasonal tropical to ever-wet...

The number or types of origins of the components of a coal bed cannot be determined from its bulk composition. Minerals such as quartz, calcite, and pyrite as well as macerals such as vitrinite can originate from a variety of processes that result from different depositional conditions. The Upper Freeport coal bed was studied and characterized by sampling and analyzing its mappable...

An ion microprobe mass analyzer (IMMA) has been used to analyze semi-quantitatively mineral-rich coal particles from two separate facies of the Upper Freeport coal bed. Accuracy is estimated to be ∓ 20% for those elements making up more than 0.1 wt.% of the particles and ∓ 50% for elements making up less than 0.1 wt.%. Using IMMA data, we found statistically significant differences...

When bituminous coal is heated in an inert atmosphere (He) containing small amounts of oxygen at 393–455 °C, pyrite (FeS2) in coal is partially converted to magnetite (Fe304). The maximum amount of Fe304 formed during the time of heating corresponds to 5–20% of the total pyrite present, depending on the coal sample. The magnetite forms as an outer crust on the pyrite grains. The fact...

An important aspect of the petrographic description of coal is the characterization of coal quality, including chemical attributes. For geologic investigations, data on the concentrations, distribution, and modes of occurrence of minor and trace elements provide a basis for reconstructing the probable geochemical environment of the swamp material that was converted into peat, and the...