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Natural and Process Compressors
Published in Leslie R. Rudnick, Synthetics, Mineral Oils, and Bio-Based Lubricants, 2020
CO is used in the production of many chemicals including acids, esters, methanol, phosgene, steelmaking, and other metal processing. It is also found as a component in other gases such as with hydrocarbons and H2. For example, coal gas is produced by heating coal in the absence of air; the main components are H2, methane, and CO. Syngas is a mixture of CO and H2.
Sustainable development in green energies and the environment
Published in Rodolfo Dufo-López, Jaroslaw Krzywanski, Jai Singh, Emerging Developments in the Power and Energy Industry, 2019
Industry’s use of fossil fuels has been largely blamed for warming the climate. When coal, gas and oil are burnt, they release harmful gases, which trap heat in the atmosphere and cause global warming. However, there had been an ongoing debate on this subject, as scientists have struggled to distinguish between changes, which are human induced, and those, which could be put down to natural climate variability. Notably, human activities that emit carbon dioxide (CO2), the most significant contributor to potential climate change, occur primarily from fossil fuel production. Consequently, efforts to control CO2 emissions could have serious, negative consequences for economic growth, employment, investment, trade and the standard of living of individuals everywhere.
A history of manufactured gas and natural gas
Published in Anthony N. Penna, A History of Energy Flows, 2019
Coal gas is produced from the carbonization of coal and consists of hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide, and illuminants. Gasification processes and the associated fuel gas produced included: producer gas consisting of carbon monoxide and hydrogen; carburetted water gas consisting of hydrogen, carbon monoxide and illuminants, and oil gas consisting of hydrogen and methane with a lesser amount of carbon monoxide and illuminants. Each of the town gas processes discussed (i.e., coal gas, oil gas and carburetted water gas) contained water vapor, tar, naphthalene and hydrogen sulfide as impurities.
Alfred Fletcher’s campaign for black smoke abatement, 1864–96: Anticipating the 1956 Clean Air Act
Published in The International Journal for the History of Engineering & Technology, 2021
During the late 1870s and through the 1880s, there was increasing interest in replacing coal by coal gas for industrial, commercial and household purposes. Coal gas (principally hydrogen, methane and carbon monoxide) was produced by the destructive distillation of coal and its illuminating property was developed by William Murdock in the 1790s. Gas works became a common feature of a town’s landscape and as the system of mains expanded, gas was widely distributed for not only lighting but also as a fuel for heating; it was a clean fuel when burnt. Even in the 1850s, Fletcher had utilised gas as a substitute for coal when setting up his dye-works in the East End of London. He always remained receptive to any proposal that made use of gas, and in 1877 had worked closely with a chemical manufacturer in Widnes on developing a gas furnace. The large number of diary entries referring to gas furnaces and domestic appliances during the 1880s is indicative of the growing interest in this source of cleaner energy.
George E. Davis (1850–1907): Transition From Consultant Chemist to Consultant Chemical Engineer in a Period of Economic Pressure
Published in Ambix, 2020
George Davis was born in 1850 at Eton (Berkshire). His father was a bookseller and access to books probably inspired George’s interest in science and chemistry. Having terminated his apprenticeship as a bookbinder in 1866, George Davis pursued his interest in chemistry, working at the local gasworks in Windsor (Berkshire), and studying part-time at the Slough Mechanics’ Institute.17 Gas works had begun to form an important part of the townscape from the early years of the nineteenth century, following William Murdock’s invention of coal gas for lighting in the 1790s. Coal gas was produced by heating coal to a high temperature in a retort causing the destructive distillation of coal, resulting in coal gas together with other important chemical products: ammoniacal liquor (for fertilisers) and benzole (a mixture of benzene and toluene, used for dyestuffs and later explosives). While production of coal gas was a relatively crude process, it provided Davis with his first practical experience of large-scale chemical plant. Davis later returned to this industry when attempting to make the processes for ammoniacal liquor and benzole more effective and economic. Through his attendance at Slough Mechanics’ Institute, Davis must have acquired a competency in science that, coupled with his work experience, secured his attendance at the Royal School of Mines in London, then one of the leading institutions for studying chemistry.18
A detailed study of IC engines and a novel discussion with comprehensive view of alternative fuels used in petrol and diesel engines
Published in International Journal of Ambient Energy, 2021
I. Vinoth Kanna, M. Arulprakasajothi, Sherin Eliyas
The earliest internal combustion engines in the late 1800s were fuelled with coal gas. Coal gas is obtained by the coking, that is, partial pyrolysis of coal, similar to the process of producing charcoal from wood. The pyrolysis process drives off the volatile constituents in the coal. Coal gas is typically 50% hydrogen, 35% methane, 10% carbon monoxide, and other trace gases such as ethylene. Coal gas was the primary source of gaseous fuel in the United States until replaced by natural gas in the 1940s. Use of gaseous fuels such as methane for internal combustion engines is increasing, due to increased availability and relatively lower emissions relative to liquid fuels (Devaraj, Yuvarajan, and Vinoth Kanna 2018b; Vinoth kanna and Subramani forthcoming).