Development and testing of a commercial scale coal-fired combustion system -- Phase 3. Final technical progress report, September 26, 1990--August 31, 1994

This report summarizes the results of work performed in the development and testing of a coal-fired space heating system for the commercial market sector. Although coal is the most plentiful energy resource in the US, its use since World War II has been largely restricted to utility power generation for environmental and economic reasons. Within the commercial sector, oil and natural gas are the predominant heating fuels for office buildings, apartment complexes, and similar structures. Generally, these buildings require firing rates of 1 to 10 million Btu/hr. The objective of this program was to design, build, and test a coal-based heating system for this sector, and determine the economic viability and market potential for the system. Coal water slurry (CWS) fuel was chosen as the fuel form for this development effort. CWS eliminates the need to use dry pulverized coal with its attendant handling, metering, and dusting problems, as well as its explosive potential. A brief description of the overall system design is given in this report, as well as a discussion of the unique features of the system configuration and key components. This is followed by a summary of the testing performed, including a comparison between system performance and program goals. Finally, the results of the economic evaluation are presented, along with a commercialization plan for the technology. A key issue in the eventual commercialization of the technology is the availability of a competitively priced coal water slurry fuel. Predicted prices and availability of CWS are discussed