Structure-Based Predictive model for Coal Char Combustion.

During the third quarter of this project, progress was made on both major technical tasks. Progress was made in the chemistry department at OSU on the calculation of thermodynamic properties for a number of model organic compounds. Modelling work was carried out at Brown to adapt a thermodynamic model of carbonaceous mesophase formation, originally applied to pitch carbonization, to the prediction of coke texture in coal combustion. This latter work makes use of the FG-DVC model of coal pyrolysis developed by Advanced Fuel Research to specify the pool of aromatic clusters that participate in the order/disorder transition. This modelling approach shows promise for the mechanistic prediction of the rank dependence of char structure and will therefore be pursued further. Crystalline ordering phenomena were also observed in a model char prepared from phenol-formaldehyde carbonized at 900{degrees}C and 1300{degrees}C using high-resolution TEM fringe imaging. Dramatic changes occur in the structure between 900 and 1300{degrees}C, making this char a suitable candidate for upcoming in situ work on the hot stage TEM. Work also proceeded on molecular dynamics simulations at Boston University and on equipment modification and testing for the combustion experiments with widely varying flame types at Ohio State