Filling the need for new and improved energy sources is an area where societal effects of science and technology will surely increase. The editors and authors have attempted in this volume to present the most current work on the science and technology of coal and coal utilization. Serious disagreement exists on several key issues such as carbon dioxide release and acid rain. At the same time, however, coal is the world's most abundant fossil fuel and will have to be used to supply the world's energy needs for the next several decades. The 1979 National Research Council Report, "En- ergy in Transition: 1985-2010," has estimated that the United States alone may go from a 1979 coal consumption of 14 QUADS per annum (approximately 750 million tons per year) to approximately 40-50 QUADS per annum (approximately 2 billion tons per year) by the year 2010. If this scale of coal utilization is to become a reality, a significant level of research and development will be necessary to establish advanced process technologies and to improve related areas such as materials and instrumentation.
The editors hope that this volume will allow a technically educated person to become aware of the several aspects of coal utilization, from characterization of coal itself to the processes of coal utilization. B. R. Cooper and W. A. Ellingson March, 1983 vii Contents 1. THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY OF COAL AND COAL UTILIZATION ...1 Bernard R. Cooper and William A. Ellingson 2. COAL CHARACTERIZATION...