Prospects for Coal Briquettes as a Substitute Fuel for Wood and ...

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3. J. The technol ogical assessment shoul d
include an analysis of coal characteristics, an engineering study of the
appropri ate type and scai e of br iy uetti ng and ca rbonl z ing operat1 6ns~
and capital avail abil ity.
The grade of coal and its sul fur and ash contents w i l l affect the type
of briquetti ng and carbonizaticn operation that is appropriate.
Therefore, a representative sample of coal must be obtained, shipped to
a laboratoryr and assayed. Behavior of the coal under briquetting and
carboniaati on conditions must be ascertai ne& e. g. , re1 ati on hetween
time/tmperature conditions and residual volatile contentr ignitabil ity
vs. vol ati 1 B matter content, suppressi OD of resi dual sul fur content
during combustion, the optimal type of binder for briquette strength and
durabil ity, etc.
In addition, an engineerfng study is necessary to design the type of
plant appropriate to the coal and the size of plant that is appropriate
to the market. Which of the many carbonization and briquettiny
processes should be used? Should off-gases be recycled or be used offsite?
Shou? d by-product el ectricity by produced? kJ ill the correct
bi nder be re1 iably avail ab1 e? Where shoerl d the p1 ant be si ted--taki ng
into conslderation coal supplyp labor supply, availabil ity of uti1 ities,
transportati on, and proximity to markets. How 1 abor i ntensfve shoul d
the mini ng and briq uetti ng/ca rbonizati on operati ons be? What measures
are: needed to protect health, safety, and the enviroment?
As part af the technological assesmesrt, a survey of the domestic
capital available is also needed. It is possiblep as in India, that.
domestic equipment for the briqwettlng and carbonization operations w i l l
be adequate and cheaperr even though not as durable as imported
equipment, This caw save on foreign exchange costs. The amount of
qui gment avail ab1 e for briquetti ng operations of di fferent scal es and
1 eve1 L; of technol oyy shoul d be determined.
Whll e only an examination of individual country ci rcurnstances can
ascertain thisl an inte ediate 1we1 of technology in the briquettlng/
carbonization operation may prove best for fmpl mentation in many
countries. An intermediate techno1 ogy approach to produci ng the
smoke1 ess coal briquettes is cheaper than the high techno1 ogy approach,
whll e a1 so prov ldi ng the oppostuni ty for sane by-product recovery. This
he1 ps reduce pol 1 ut1 on prabl ems. Also, the by-products mlght be
recycl ed into the briquetti ng/carbonization operation, as in the case of
the off-gases as a fuel, or sold, as in the case of the tars and 1
for boiler fuel or asphalts for road surfacing (if a market for th
be establ ishedl Artisanai manufacture a6 the mokel ess coal briquettes
is a second possibil ity9 if no by-product recovery is desired and
pollution probla~s can be avoided. Such questlions need to be answered
during the tech no1 agi cal assessment.
4. GOVF RNMENT POLIC YAMD-WNIN G ASSESSMENT . While coal carbonization
and briquetting provides an excel lent opportun~ty for eventual control
largely by the private sector, the roles of the host country government
and A.E.D. in start-up operations must be assessed. For the host