UCG
The process of converting hard coal into gas has been around for nearly 200 years. The first practical application of gas derived from gasifying mined coal at the surface was in London's Street lighting system in 1807.
As early as 1812, the Gas Light and Coke Company of London were formed and, by the mid 19th Century, surface coal gasification was a major industry in most of the rapidly developing industrialised nations.
UCG clean coal technology uses a similar process to that used in surface gasification. The main difference between both gasification processes is that in UCG the cavity itself becomes the reactor so that the gasification of the coal takes place underground instead of at the surface.
Click here to view a presentation of the process.UCG in Australia
UCG clean coal technology is simply a unique and smart way of releasing the valuable energy contained in stranded underground coal resources.
- There is no need to dig up the coal.
- Capital and operating costs are lower than in traditional mining
- It is environmentally friendly
- It makes extraction of vast underground coal reserves
- commercially viable
- It relies on a gasification principle that has been practiced at the surface for nearly 200 years
The development of UCG clean coal technology in Australia was strongly advocated by the late Professor Ian Stewart of the University of Newcastle.
Professor Ian Stewart directed a program of laboratory test work, followed by a government funded feasibility study in 1983 into the production of UCG gas at the Leigh Creek coal mine in South Australia.
The project study evaluated the use of the gas as a fuel for combustion in gas turbines. It concluded that such a project would be cost competitive with other sources of power.
As a result of reviewing this work and other international activities, Linc Energy was formed to research, develop and commercialise the UCG process in Australia.
Being at the forefront of UCG clean coal technology application in the western world for the last 6 years, Linc is now in a unique position to advance UCG in the western world. Linc Energy Ltd has entered into a co-operation agreement with two prestigious, world-renown, mining institutions in Russia: the National Scientific Centre of Mining Industry, the Skochinsky I nstitute of Mining (SIM) and the Scientific – Technical Mining Association (STMA).
The Skochinsky Institute of Mining (SIM) was the original creator and developer of Underground Coal Gasification (UCG) clean coal technology technology. It has over 40 years of commercial and operational experience in the production of UCG syngas at 5 national facilities in the former Soviet Union. SIM has been in existence in various forms since 1907 and possesses the world’s largest repository of UCG clean coal technology research and development material.
The Scientific – Technical Mining Association (STMA) is the supervising organisation that oversees the commercial activities of mining related institutes in Russia, including the prestigious Skochinsky Institute of Mining.
UCG and The Skochinsky Institute of Mining (SIM)
The UCG technology developed by the Institute was implemented in 5 power stations in the former Soviet Union in the early 1960s. They consisted of 3 brown coal and 2 black coal power stations. Of these 5 original stations, the only one still in production is the Power Station at Angren, Uzbekistan, producing 30,000 normal cubic metres of syngas per hour. The others have been converted to gas fired stations due to the significant natural gas reserves in the former Soviet Union. All of the expertise, which led to the commercially viable exploitation of UCG clean coal technology was developed by the Skochinsky Institute of Mining (SIM).
In 1975, the United States government purchased a license to UCG technology and consultative expertise from the Skochinsky Institute of Mining (SIM.) This led to the first of several successful UCG clean coal technologytrials in the US.
Dr A.A. Kuznetsov is the Head of Unconventional Mining Methods (UCG) and Mineral Resources Conversion Department at the National Mining Research Centre Skochinsky Institute of Mining. He has been with the SIM for over 20 years and is known to be the world’s foremost expert on UCG clean coal technology. His advice has been regularly sought by other UCG experts including Linc Energy during its pilot gasification phase at Chinchilla.
It is expected that Dr. Kuznetsov will be a key consultant to contribute to the significant body of operational knowledge, which Linc has already created at its pilot facility in Chinchilla as we recommence our UCG operation in full.
For more information, click here.
