Zhundong area in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Regions, China is rich in subbituminous coal reserves. Zhundong coal is characteristic of low mining cost and fine reactivity. However, the serious slagging and fouling occurring on the heating surface because of the high sodium content of Zhundong coal leads to very dangerous and uneconomical operation of Zhundong coal-burning boilers. Here, A method using a washing solution to remove sodium from the coal is presented and the effects of temperature, pressure and washing solution amount on the sodium removal from Zhundong coal was investigated. The experimental results show that the temperature employed is the main influencing factor for sodium removal and pressure has little influence on the results. After treatment with the right processing conditions, the upgraded Zhundong coal with the sodium content below 2% (based on ash yield) is obtained and the sodium removal efficiency is higher than 70%.
The characteristics of mineralogy, morphology and sintering during co-combustion of Zhundong coal and oil shale
