UNDERGROUND COAL GASIFICATION

MOHAMMED KABIRUDDIN
University of Petroleum & Energy Studies
UCG PRINCIPLES & ESSENTIALS
Underground Coal Gasification (UCG) converts coal into a
gaseous form (syngas) through the same chemical reactions
that occur in surface gasifiers

The economics of UCG look promising as capital expenses

should be considerably less than surface gasification

Essentials:
Site location -biggest issue
Coal characteristics–operations
Technologies-connecting wells
 INTRODUCTION
The technology was first widely used in the USA during the later
1800s.

Indiain Calcutta (Kolkata) and Bombay (Mumbai) in early

1900.

Lamplighters in many cities used to light streetlights by “town

gas”, the product of early and relatively crude forms of coal
gasification.

3
INTRODUCTION
1912 Co. Durham UK First Test
1930’s Intensive Soviet Development
1950/60’s Early European Trials – inc.
1955 Newman Spinney – Ntl Coal Board
1970/80’s US Programme - 6 Major Trials
1980’s European Studies and First Trial
Early 1990’s First US commercial designs
Mid to late 1990’s El Tremedal, Spain

European Trial
DTI UCG Initiative (1999-2005)
Australian Pilot 4
Firth of Forth Feasibility Study
WHY UCG NOW?

Security of supply
– indigenous coal
– Un - mineable coal
• Carbon Capture & Storage
– Pre-combustion processing
– Local storage options
Advances in UCG Technology
– Drilling, completion, control
 Production Costs for clean syngas
– Competitive against natural gas
(EU, US)
 Flexibility of Syngas for poly-generation
– Existing or new power stations, GTL,
SNG, H2 and other chemicals
FACTORS AFFECTING UCG DESIGNS
 CRITERIA FOR UCG
UCG requires special properties of coal seam:

Coal seam lays underground between 100 and 600 metres

(preferably more than 300 metres)
Thickness is more than 5 metres
Ash content is less than 60%
Minimal discontinuities in seam
No good water aquifers

7
US SITE SELECTION CRITERIA
HOW DOES UCG WORK?

Step 1: Find the coal

Step 2: Drill the boreholes
Step 3: Link the boreholes
Step 4: Ignite the coal
Step 5: Inject the O2 and steam
Step 6: Extract the syngas
WORLD STATUS
WORLD SITES
UCG SITES
UCG SITES
US

31 tests involving DOE, Gulf, Texas A&M, GRI,

ARCO
Rocky Mountain Trial, 14,000 tons of coal 93
days
Oxygen Fired CV 9-11 MJ/m3
Commercial scheme for ammonia production
developed – not constructed
UCG HARNESS
Worldwide UCG operations experience with respect to coal seam
depth and thickness(2004).
ANGREN UCG POWER STATION, UZBEKISTAN

UCG
 Co-fired
Plant
operating for 30
years

UCG
 used in
dedicated 100MW
steam turbine

Linc
 Energy have
bought a majority
stake in the plant
UCG IN SOUTH AFRICA
Eskom
 UCG Trial at
Majuba Coal field,
3.5m thick at 300m
depth (Jan 2007).
Air-blown
co-fired
350MWe IGCC unit
planned

Sasol
 initiated a new
UCG trial project at
Secunda as a potential
feedstock for CTL Plant.
CHINA
China has over 50 large coal gasification
facilities nationwide.

China has executed at least 16 pilots since

1991,

And has invested in extensive research

programs at China University of Mining
Technology in Beijing.
INDIA & WORLD
There
 is over 5 million PJ of resource for UCG gas
in the United States, 2.2 million PJ of UCG gas in
China, and 1.9 million PJ of UCG gas available in
India.

The
 Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
(USA)
has estimated that recoverable reserves could be
increased by at least 300% to 400% and that 1.6
trillion tons of un-mineable coal in the USA may be
recoverable with UCG.
AUSTRALIA

The
 World Energy Council’s 2007 Survey on
Energy
Resources estimates that 45% of Australia’s
proven in place reserves, or 44 billion tonnes, is
available for extraction by UCG.

Applying
 this same proportion to Queensland’s
measured plus inferred sources of thermal coal,
suggests that there are possibly 16 billion tonnes
that may be available for UCG in Queensland.
AUSTRALIAN DEVELOPMENTS
Linc Energy,
– Successful share offering in 2006, now
worth $1.5B
– Development of a GTL plant is underway
– New projects starting in S Australia,
Vietnam & USA (Dec 08)

Carbon Energy (2006)

– Joint venture with CSIRO gas now started
(Oct 2007)

Cougar Energy (2007)

– Site for 400MW CCGT Plant in S Australia
– Using Ergo energy.
THE CHINCHILLA UCG FACILITY
THE CHINCHILLA UCG FACILITY
AUSTRALIA
AUSTRALIA
OTHER FEASIBLE AREAS
Indonesia

Vietnam

Pakistan
 (Thar Coalfield
Power & GTL)
Japan

Chinese Mining Companies,

e.g. Xinwen, Ezhuang
Mongolia

New Zealand (Solid Energy)

INDIA
GAIL also plans to set up a coal gasification
project in eastern India (Durgapur, Haldia, and
Talcher) to produce 3.4 MSCMD of syngas.

In September 2005, GAIL has signed an

memorandum with the Shaanxi Huashan
Chemical Industry group of China to undertake
coal gasification activities in the Shaanxi
province.
INDIA
GAIL
 (India) Ltd has signed a memorandum of
cooperation with Ergo Exergy Technologies Inc.,
Canada, to explore UCG projects in India.
Ergo
 Exergy will help GAIL to
i) determine the technical and economic viability
of each project
ii) bring in efficient drilling techniques and
production of UCG gas in commercial quantity with
quality.
NTPC VIEW
UCG IN INDIA

The
 Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd. (NLC), which has
got Government approval for taking-up a UCG Project
in lignite deposits of Rajasthan, has not been able to
get a suitable technical partner, so far.

• The Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) has been

exploring possibilities for taking up a UCG project in
India.
UCG IN INDIA
ONGC,
 while drilling in search of hydrocarbons,
discovered large reserves of coal at depths more than
600m.
These
 are spread in Gujarat and West Bengal and
have been estimated to contain more than 350bt of
coal deposit.
In
 Gujarat alone, these coal reserves have been
estimated to be around 63 bt in Mehsana-Ahmedabad
block and 60 bt in Patan-Tharad block.
UCG IN INDIA
The
 energy estimated for Mehsana - Ahmedabad
block alone, is equivalent to about 15,000 bcm of
natural gas.

The
 ONGC is conducting a pilot test in Mehsana area
at an estimated cost of Rs 9.60 crores.

• An Information Well – UCG-1 – was drilled in 1986 to

a depth of 1005m at the selected site.
ESTIMATED RESERVES FROM WEC 2008
POSITIVE FACTORS
1. UCG is the only feasible technology, which enables
exploitation of deep (> 700m) coal reserves, which
are not amenable to known conventional mining
methods.

2. UCG offers an environmentally clean way to harness

energy from coal.

3. UCG brings no solid waste to the surface.

POSITIVE FACTORS

4. Even at shallower depths (< 500m), UCG can be more

economical than conventional mining.

5. UCG reduces capital investment, operating costs, and

the output gases cost by 25 to 50% as compared to
surface gasification.

6. Possibilities of transport of medium calorific value gas

over a distance of 100 km. exist.
POSITIVE FACTORS

7. Possibilities of using CO2 from the gas for enhanced

oil recovery exist.

8. Basic UCG technology is known.

9. Conditions in India are far more compelling for

adopting UCG than most locations in the world.
ANNUAL CASH FLOW FOR 1,000MW UCG GAS PLANT WITH
CO2
CAPTURE (CO2 $20/TONNE)

Internal
rate of return
25-30%, (with storage)

CO2credit 32% of
revenue
Syngas Utilisation
Options

480 Mwe electrical

power
10,00 bb/d diesel
savings
ADVANTAGES:
Much
 higher coal extraction – up to 95%
No pillars

Multiple seams

Thick and thin seams

More economic – less capital expenditure

Economic on a smaller scale

Potential to be cleaner technology – smaller

environmental footprint

Little or no rehabilitation required

No fine coal

No Ash

Safer

DISADVANTAGES

Potentialfor contamination
Controllability of the reaction
CONCLUSION

Viable alternative mining method for otherwise

unminable coal
Potential smaller environmental footprint than
conventional process
Better utilisation of coal reserves