A lignite stockpile (above) and a lignite briquette
Lignite (derived from Latinlignum meaning 'wood'), often referred to as brown coal,[1] is a soft, brown, combustiblesedimentary rock formed from naturally compressed peat. It has a carbon content around 25–35%[1][2] and is considered the lowest rank of coal due to its relatively low heat content. When removed from the ground, it contains a very high amount of moisture, which partially explains its low carbon content. Lignite is mined all around the world and is used almost exclusively as a fuel for steam-electric power generation.
Lignite combustion produces less heat for the amount of carbon dioxide and sulfur released than other ranks of coal. As a result, lignite is the most harmful coal to human health.[3] Depending on the source, various toxic heavy metals, including naturally occurring radioactive materials, may be present in lignite and left over in the coal fly ash produced from its combustion, further increasing health risks.[4]
Characteristics
Lignite is brownish-black in color and has a carbon content of 60–70 percent on a dry ash-free basis. However, its inherent moisture content is sometimes as high as 75 percent[1] and its ash content ranges from 6–19 percent, compared with 6–12 percent for bituminous coal.[5] As a result, its carbon content on the as-received basis (i.e., containing both inherent moisture and mineral matter) is typically just 25-35 percent.[2]
The energy content of lignite ranges from 10 to 20 MJ/kg (9–17 million BTU per short ton) on a moist, mineral-matter-free basis. The energy content of lignite consumed in the United States averages 15 MJ/kg (13 million BTU/ton), on the as-received basis.[6] The energy content of lignite consumed in Victoria, Australia, averages 8.6 MJ/kg (8.2 million BTU/ton) on a net wet basis.[7]
Lignite has a high content of volatile matter which makes it easier to convert into gas and liquid petroleum products than higher-ranking coals. Its high moisture content and susceptibility to spontaneous combustion can cause problems in transportation and storage. Processes which remove water from brown coal reduce the risk of spontaneous combustion to the same level as black coal, increase the calorific value of brown coal to a black coal equivalent fuel, and significantly reduce the emissions profile of 'densified' brown coal to a level similar to or better than most black coals.[8] However, removing the moisture increases the cost of the final lignite fuel.
Lignite rapidly degrades when exposed to air. This process is called slacking or slackening.[9]
Uses
Most lignite is used to generate electricity.[2] However, small amounts are used in agriculture, in industry, and even, as jet, in jewelry. Its historical use as fuel for home heating has continuously declined and is now of lower importance than its use to generate electricity.
As fuel
Lignite is often found in thick beds located near the surface, making it inexpensive to mine. However, because of its low energy density, tendency to crumble, and typically high moisture content, brown coal is inefficient to transport and is not traded extensively on the world market compared with higher coal grades.[1][7] It is often burned in power stations near the mines, such as in Australia's Latrobe Valley and Luminant's Monticello plant and Martin Lake plant in Texas. Primarily because of latent high moisture content and low energy density of brown coal, carbon dioxide emissions from traditional brown-coal-fired plants are generally much higher per megawatt-hour generated than for comparable black-coal plants, with the world's highest-emitting plant being Australia's Hazelwood Power Station[10] until its closure in March 2017.[11] The operation of traditional brown-coal plants, particularly in combination with strip mining, is politically contentious due to environmental concerns.[12][13]
The German Democratic Republic relied extensively on lignite to become energy self-sufficient, and eventually obtained 70% of its energy requirements from lignite.[14] Lignite was also an important chemical industry feedstock via Bergius process or Fischer-Tropsch synthesis in lieu of petroleum,[15] which had to be imported for hard currency following a change in policy by the Soviet Union in the 1970s, which had previously delivered petroleum at below market rates.[16] East German scientists even converted lignite into coke suitable for metallurgical uses (high temperature lignite coke) and much of the railway network was dependent on lignite either through steam trains or electrified lines mostly fed with lignite derived power.[16] As per the table below, East Germany was the largest producer of lignite for much of its existence as an independent state.
In 2014, about 12 percent of Germany's energy and, specifically, 27 percent of Germany's electricity came from lignite power plants,[17] while in 2014 in Greece, lignite provided about 50 percent of its power needs. Germany has announced plans to phase out lignite by 2038 at the latest.[18][19][20][21] Greece has confirmed that the last coal plant will be shut in 2025 after receiving pressure from the European Union[22] and plans to heavily invest in renewable energy.[23]
Home heating
Lignite was and is used as a replacement for or in combination with firewood for home heating. It is usually pressed into briquettes for that use.[24][25] Due to the smell it gives off when burned, lignite was often seen as a fuel for poor people compared to higher value hard coals. In Germany, briquettes are still readily available to end consumers in home improvement stores and supermarkets.[26][27][28][29]
In agriculture
An environmentally beneficial use of lignite is in agriculture. Lignite may have value as an environmentally benign soil amendment, improving cation exchange and phosphorus availability in soils while reducing availability of heavy metals,[30][31] and may be superior to commercial K humates.[32] Lignite fly ash produced by combustion of lignite in power plants may also be valuable as a soil amendment and fertilizer.[33] However, rigorous studies of the long-term benefits of lignite products in agriculture are lacking.[34]
Lignite may also be used for the cultivation and distribution of biological control microbes that suppress plant pests. The carbon increases the organic matter in the soil while the biological control microbes provide an alternative to chemical pesticides.[35]
Leonardite is a soil conditioner rich in humic acids that is formed by natural oxidation when lignite comes in contact with air.[36] The process can be replicated artificially on a large scale.[37] The less matured xyloid (wood-shaped) lignite also contains high amounts of humic acid.[38]
In drilling mud
Reaction with quaternary amine forms a product called amine-treated lignite (ATL), which is used in drilling mud to reduce fluid loss during drilling.[39]
As an industrial adsorbent
Lignite may have potential uses as an industrial adsorbent. Experiments show that its adsorption of methylene blue falls within the range of activated carbons currently used by industry.[40]
In jewellery
Jet is a form of lignite that has been used as a gemstone.[41] The earliest jet artifacts date to 10,000 BCE[42] and jet was used extensively in necklaces and other ornamentation in Britain from the Neolithic until the end of Roman Britain.[43] Jet experienced a brief revival in Victorian Britain.[44]
Geology
Lignite begins as an accumulation of partially decayed plant material, or peat. Peat accumulates most readily in areas where there is ample moisture, slow subsidence of the land surface, and lack of disturbance by rivers or oceans. Peat swamps are otherwise found in a wide variety of climates and geographical settings. Under these conditions, the area remains saturated with water, which covers dead plant material and protects it from degradation by atmospheric oxygen. Anaerobic bacteria may continue to degrade the peat, but this process is slow, particularly in acid water. Once the peat is buried by other sediments, biological degradation essentially comes to a halt, and further changes are a result of increased temperature and pressure from burial.[45]
Lignite forms from peat that has not experienced deep burial and heating. It forms at temperatures below 100 °C (212 °F),[1] primarily by biochemical degradation. This includes humification, in which microorganisms extract hydrocarbons from the peat and humic acids are formed. The humic acids make the environment more acidic, which slows the rate of further bacterial decay. Humification is still incomplete in lignite, coming to completion only when the coal reaches sub-bituminous rank.[46] The most characteristic chemical change in the organic material during formation of lignite is the sharp reduction in the number of C=O and C-O-R functional groups.[47]
Lignite deposits are typically younger than higher-ranked coals, with the majority of them having formed during the Tertiary period.[1]
Extraction
Lignite is often found in thick beds located near the surface.[1][7] These are inexpensive to extract using various forms of surface mining, though this can result in serious environmental damage.[48] Regulations in the United States and other countries require that land that is surface mined must be restored to its original productivity once mining is complete.[49]
Strip mining of lignite in the United States begins with drilling to establish the extent of the subsurface beds. Topsoil and subsoil must be properly removed and either used to reclaim previously mined-out areas or stored for future reclamation. Excavator and truck overburden removal prepares the area for dragline overburden removal to expose the lignite beds. These are broken up using specially equipped tractors (coal ripping) and then loaded into bottom dump trucks using front loaders.[50]
Once the lignite is removed, restoration involves grading the mine spoil to as close an approximation as practical of the original ground surface (Approximate Original Contour or AOC). Subsoil and topsoil are restored and the land reseeded with various grasses. In North Dakota, a performance bond is held against the mining company for at least ten years after the end of mining operations to guarantee that the land has been restored to full productivity.[49] A bond (not necessary in this form) for mine reclamation is required in the US by the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977.[51]
The Latrobe Valley in Victoria, Australia, contains estimated reserves of some 65 billion tonnes of brown coal.[57] The deposit is equivalent to 25 percent of known world reserves. The coal seams are up to 98 m (322 ft) thick, with multiple coal seams often giving virtually continuous brown coal thickness of up to 230 m (755 ft). Seams are covered by very little overburden (10 to 20 m (33 to 66 ft)).[57]
A partnership led by Kawasaki Heavy Industries and backed by the governments of Japan and Australia has begun extracting hydrogen from brown coal. The liquefied hydrogen will be shipped via the transporter Suiso Frontier to Japan.[58]
North America
The largest lignite deposits in North America are the Gulf Coast lignites and the Fort Union lignite field. The Gulf Coast lignites are located in a band running from Texas to Alabama roughly parallel to the Gulf Coast. The Fort Union lignite field stretches from North Dakota to Saskatchewan. Both are important commercial sources of lignite.[9]
Types
Lignite can be separated into two types: xyloid lignite or fossil wood, and compact lignite or perfect lignite.
Although xyloid lignite may sometimes have the tenacity and the appearance of ordinary wood, it can be seen that the combustible woody tissue has experienced a great modification. It is reducible to a fine powder by trituration, and if submitted to the action of a weak solution of potash, it yields a considerable quantity of humic acid.[38]Leonardite is an oxidized form of lignite, which also contains high levels of humic acid.[59]
Jet is a hardened, gem-like form of lignite used in various types of jewelry.[41]
Production
This article needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(January 2023)
Orders of magnitude (specific energy) – Physical quantity representing energy content per unit massPages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets
Subcoal – Coal substitute made from recycled waste
Torrefaction – mild form of pyrolysis to convert biomass to a char-like substancePages displaying wikidata descriptions as a fallback
^George, A.M.. State Electricity Victoria, Petrographic Report No 17. 1975; Perry, G.J and Allardice, D.J. Coal Resources Conference, NZ 1987 Proc.1, Sec. 4.. Paper R4.1
^Kim Thi Tran, Cuc; Rose, Michael T.; Cavagnaro, Timothy R.; Patti, Antonio F. (November 2015). "Lignite amendment has limited impacts on soil microbial communities and mineral nitrogen availability". Applied Soil Ecology. 95: 140–150. Bibcode:2015AppSE..95..140K. doi:10.1016/j.apsoil.2015.06.020.
^Jones, Richard; Petit, R; Taber, R (1984). "Lignite and stillage:carrier and substrate for application of fungal biocontrol agents to soil". Phytopathology. 74 (10): 1167–1170. doi:10.1094/Phyto-74-1167.
^ abNeuendorf, K. K. E. Jr.; Mehl, J. P.; Jackson, J. A., eds. (2005). Glossary of Geology (5th ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: American Geological Institute. p. 344.
^Ibarra, JoséV.; Muñoz, Edgar; Moliner, Rafael (June 1996). "FTIR study of the evolution of coal structure during the coalification process". Organic Geochemistry. 24 (6–7): 725–735. Bibcode:1996OrGeo..24..725I. doi:10.1016/0146-6380(96)00063-0.
^Turgeon, Andrew; Morse, Elizabeth (22 December 2012). "Coal". National Geographic. Archived from the original on 25 September 2021. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
^ ab"Reclamation Process". Mining Lignite Coal for our Energy Future. BNI Coal. Archived from the original on 25 September 2021. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
^"Mining Process". Mining Lignite Coal for our Energy Future. BNI Coal. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
^"Reclamation Bonds". Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement. Archived from the original on 2022-03-02. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
^While the Statista review reports 10975 million tonnes for Turkey, the 2005-2019 surveys of the Mineral Research and Exploration General Directorate of Turkey has almost doubled this value. "Kömür Arama Araştırmaları" [Coal Surveying Studies] (in Turkish). MTA Genel Müdürlüğü. Retrieved 2022-07-30.
^ abDepartment of Primary Industries, Victorian Government, Australia, ‘Victoria Australia: A Principle Brown Coal Province’ (Fact Sheet, Department of Primary Industries, July 2010).
^Appunn, Kerstine (7 August 2018). "Germany's three lignite mining regions". The Clean Energy Wire. Archived from the original on 26 November 2018. Retrieved 5 July 2019. Germany has been the largest lignite producer in the world since the beginning of industrial lignite mining. It still is, followed by China, Russia, and the United States. The softer and moister lignite (also called brown or soft coal) has a lower calorific value than hard coal and can only be mined in opencast operations. When burned, it is more CO2 intensive than hard coal.
Peta wilayah Vroville. Vroville merupakan sebuah komune di departemen Vosges yang terletak pada sebelah timur laut Prancis. Lihat pula Komune di departemen Vosges Referensi INSEE lbsKomune di departemen Vosges Les Ableuvenettes Ahéville Aingeville Ainvelle Allarmont Ambacourt Ameuvelle Anglemont Anould Aouze Arches Archettes Aroffe Arrentès-de-Corcieux Attignéville Attigny Aulnois Aumontzey Autigny-la-Tour Autreville Autrey Auzainvilliers Avillers Avrainville Avranville Aydoilles Badménil-au…
Suet puddingJenisPuddingBahan utamaWheat flour and SuetVariasiSpotted dick, Christmas pudding, Treacle pudding, Clootie, Jam Roly-Poly, Paignton, Sussex pond puddingSunting kotak info • L • BBantuan penggunaan templat ini Puding suet adalah puding yang direbus, dikukus, atau dipanggang yang dibuat dengan tepung terigu dan lemak (lemak daging sapi atau kambing mentah dan keras yang ditemukan di sekitar ginjal), sering kali dengan remah roti, buah-buahan kering seperti kismis, buah-b…
Kumbang Jerapah Giraffe weevil Klasifikasi ilmiah Kerajaan: Animalia Filum: Arthropoda Kelas: Insecta Ordo: Coleoptera Superfamili: Curculionoidea Famili: Attelabidae Genus: Trachelophorus Spesies: T. giraffa Nama binomial Trachelophorus giraffaJekel, 1860 Kumbang Jerapah (Trachelophorus giraffa) adalah serangga endemik di Madagaskar. Namanya berasal dari lehernya yang panjang yang mirip dengan jerapah. Kumbang ini berwarna hitam dan sayapnya berwarna merah. Kumbang lain dengan nama yang mi…
Pemimpin Skuadron Waddy di Morotai pada sekitar tahun 1945 John Lloyd Waddy, OBE, DFC (10 Desember 1916 – 11 September 1987) adalah seorang perwira dan penerbang senior dalam Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), dan kemudian menjabat sebagai anggota Majelis Legislatif New South Wales dan Menteri Mahkota. Sebagai pilot penyerang pada Perang Dunia II, ia menembak lima belas pesawat musuh dalam Perang Gurun, menjadikannya penerbang ulung pencetak skor tertinggi di Australia da…
Duta Besar Amerika Serikat untuk NikaraguaSegel Kementerian Dalam Negeri Amerika SerikatDicalonkan olehPresiden Amerika SerikatDitunjuk olehPresidendengan nasehat Senat Berikut ini adalah daftar Duta Besar Amerika Serikat untuk Nikaragua Daftar Perwakilan Diangkat oleh John B. Kerr Millard Fillmore Solon Borland Franklin Pierce John H. Wheeler Mirabeau B. Lamar James Buchanan Alexander Dimitry[1] Andrew B. Dickinson Abraham Lincoln Thomas H. Clay Andrew B. Dickinson Charles N. Riotte Uly…
2016 single by Run the JewelsLegend Has ItSingle by Run the Jewelsfrom the album Run the Jewels 3 ReleasedDecember 2, 2016 (2016-12-02)RecordedJanuary 2015 – September 2016StudioRTJGenreHip hopLength3:25LabelRun the Jewels, Inc.Songwriter(s) Jaime Meline Michael Render Producer(s)El-PRun the Jewels singles chronology 2100 (2016) Legend Has It (2016) Mean Demeanor (2017) Legend Has It is a song by American hip hop duo Run the Jewels. It was released as the third single from their…
British tennis player Joan RidleyFull nameJoan Cowell O'Meara RidleyCountry (sports) United KingdomBorn(1903-07-11)11 July 1903Ipswich, EnglandDied4 October 1983(1983-10-04) (aged 80) [1]SinglesGrand Slam singles resultsFrench Open3R (1929, 1931)WimbledonSF (1929)US OpenSF (1932)DoublesGrand Slam doubles resultsFrench OpenSF (1927)WimbledonSF (1933)Grand Slam mixed doubles resultsWimbledonF (1931) Joan Cowell O'Meara Ridley (11 July 1903 – 4 October 1983) …
Letter to a Christian Nation PengarangSam HarrisNegaraAmerika SerikatBahasaInggrisSubjekAgama, etikaPenerbitKnopf (sampul keras), Vintage (sampul kertas)Tanggal terbit19 September 2006 (sampul keras), 8 Januari 2008 (sampul kertas)Jenis mediaSampul keras, sampul kertasHalaman96 (sampul keras), 144 (sampul kertas)ISBNISBN 0-307-26577-3OCLC70158553Desimal Dewey277.3LCCBR516. H255 2006Didahului olehThe End of Faith Diikuti olehThe Moral Landscape Letter to a Chri…
Sinode Hippo atau Konsili Hippo (Inggris: Synod of Hippo) merujuk kepada pertemuan sinode pada tahun 393 yang bertempat di kota Hippo Regius[1] di Afrika Utara pada zaman Gereja Kristen perdana. Pertemuan-pertemuan berikutnya dilaksanakan pada tahun-tahun 394, 397, 401 dan 426. Beberapa di antaranya dihadiri oleh Agustinus dari Hippo. Sinode tahun 393 ini tersohor karena dua tindakan khususnya. Pertama, untuk pertama kalinya suatu konsili para uskup membuat daftar dan menyetujui suat…
Nilai magneton Bohr Sistem satuan nilai satuan SI[1] 9,274009994(57)×10−24 J·T−1 CGS[2] 9,274009994(57)×10−21 erg·G−1 eV[3] 5,7883818012(26)×10−5 eV·T−1 satuan atom 12 eħme Dalam fisika atom, magneton Bohr (simbol μB) adalah suatu konstanta fisika dan satuan umum yang digunakan untuk menyatakan momen magnetik dari suatu elektron yang disebabkan baik karena momentum sudut orbital atau spin-nya.[4][5] Definisi Magneton Bohr didefinisikan …
1936 film This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.Find sources: Avenging Waters – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (May 2019) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Avenging WatersTheatrical release posterDirected bySpencer Gordon BennetWritten byNate GatzertProduced byLarry DarmourStarringKe…
Restaurant in New York City VestryVestry in April 2024Restaurant informationHead chefShaun HergattFood typeSeafoodRatingMichelin Guide: Street address246 Spring StreetCityNew YorkStateNew YorkPostal/ZIP Code10013Coordinates40°43′31″N 74°0′20″W / 40.72528°N 74.00556°W / 40.72528; -74.00556Websitewww.vestrynyc.com Vestry is a restaurant in New York City.[1] The restaurant has a seafood-based menu and has received a Michelin star.[2] See also Food…
Untuk kegunaan lain, lihat Kontroversi (disambiguasi). Auseinandersetzung (kontroversi), oleh Karl-Henning Seemann. Kontroversi atau tengkarah adalah keadaan perselisihan atau perdebatan umum yang berkepanjangan hingga dalam jangka waktu yang cukup lama, biasanya mengenai masalah pendapat atau sudut pandang yang saling bertentangan. Kata ini diciptakan dari kata Latin controversia, sebagai gabungan controversus – berbalik ke arah yang berlawanan. Rujukan Pranala luar Wikiquote memiliki koleksi…
The Highest Heights Chanson de Lovebugs Sortie 2009 Durée 3:49 Langue anglais Genre Pop Auteur Adrian Sieber, Thomas Rechberger, Florian Senn Compositeur Adrian Sieber, Thomas Rechberger, Florian Senn Producteur Richard Rainey Label Phonag Records Chansons représentant la Suisse au Concours Eurovision de la chanson Era stupendo(2008) Il pleut de l'or(2010)modifier The Highest Heights est la chanson représentant la Suisse au Concours Eurovision de la chanson 2009. Elle est interprétée p…
Eunuch and minister of the Fatimid Caliphate Not to be confused with Jawhar al-Siqilli. Jawdhar (Arabic: جوذر, before 909 – March 973), surnamed al-Ustadh (Arabic: الأستاذ, lit. 'the Master'), was a eunuch slave who served the Fatimid caliphs al-Qa'im, al-Mansur, and al-Mu'izz as chamberlain and de facto chief minister until his death. He was an extremely powerful figure in the Fatimid court, and was ranked immediately after the caliph and his designated h…
For the disciple of Confucius with the courtesy name Zigong, see Duanmu Ci. This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.Find sources: Zigong – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (November 2013) (Learn how and when to remove this message) Prefecture-level city in Sichuan, People's Republic of ChinaZigong 自贡…
Amelia DyerAmelia DyerLahir1838Pyle Marsh, Bristol, InggrisMeninggal10 Juni 1896 (umur 58)Penjara Newgate, London, InggrisNama lainSeveral Amelia Elizabeth Dyer née Hobley (1838 – 10 Juni 1896) adalah pembunuh peternakan bayi yang paling terkemuka pada masa Inggris era Victoria.[1][2] Ia diadili dan dihukum gantung atas tuduhan pembunuhan, tetapi tidak diragukan lagi bahwa ia bertanggung jawab atas banyak kematian sejenis[3]-kemungkinan sekitar 400 atau lebih–se…
1980 painting by Marc Chagall Le Clown au CirqueArtistMarc ChagallYear1980 (1980)Mediumtempera and pen and ink on boardDimensions46 cm × 54.6 cm (18 in × 21.5 in)OwnerPrivate collection Le Clown au Cirque is a tempera and pen and ink on board painting by Belarusian-French artist Marc Chagall created in 1980. It is held in a private collection. Description The painting depicts floating clowns amid the circus ring in the middle of the performance.…