American Chemical Society Seminar: Dr. E. Gerald Meyer, April 9

Wednesday, April 9, 6:30-8 p.m. ConocoPhillips Integrated Science Building, Room 105A

At the American Chemical Society Seminar, Professor E. Gerald Meyer, Ph.D., from the University of Wyoming, will discuss green chemistry and coal. Refreshments will be served at 6:30 p.m. and the seminar will start at 7 p.m.

About the speaker: E. Gerald Meyer was born in Albuquerque, N.M., and attended Carnegie Mellon University (B.S. '40 and M.S. '42) and the University of New Mexico (Ph.D. '50). He was on the faculty of the University of Albuquerque (1950-92) and New Mexico Highlands University (1952-63), where he was department head and dean of graduate studies and research. In 1963, he was appointed professor and dean of arts and sciences at the University of Wyoming, and in 1976, vice president for research. He is currently emeritus professor and dean. He currently chairs the ACS Rocky Mountain Regional Meeting, and previously served as a past president of the American Institute of Chemists, past chair and councilor of the ACS Wyoming Section and as a member of ACS national committees.

Abstract: Coal is the most abundant energy source in the world. In the U.S., 94 percent of the fossil fuel reserves are coal. Because of its reserves, the Powder River Basin of Wyoming has a greater energy value than all the oil in the Middle East. Coal has a low hydrogen content, is a solid, has much variability and contains potential pollutants. A "green" method for refining coal, called the Charfuel Process, is simple; so why not apply the principles of oil refining to coal?

In oil refining, the crude petroleum is hydrocracked thermally and catalytically to produce a slate of products (naphtha, gasoline, diesel fuel, kerosene, heating oil, fuel oil, asphalt and coke), the total value of which is greater than the cost of the crude oil plus the cost of refining. Refining also removes pollutants such as sulfur. Thus, oil refining is actually both a value-added technology and a "green" technology as it both increases the value of the raw material and eliminates the pollutants in the raw material.

Meyer will detail the Charfuel Process in his presentation. The value-added factor for this process is nearly two. The principal products, the oil and char, can be mixed to form a fluidic fuel that can be shipped through a pipeline. It is uniform regardless of the starting coal and has a heat value of 7,200 kcal/kg. Further, it has 85 percent of the sulfur and 70 percent of the nitrogen removed, which eliminates scrubbing and catalytic conversion. Therefore the Charfuel Process of refining coal, like the process of refining oil, is both a value-added technology and a "green" technology. Such processes are the modern basis for national economic development.

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