TECHNOLOGY
Project targets advances in oil shale processing A $6.5 million project to apply recent advances in fluidized-bed processing to the hydroretorting of eastern oil shale is getting under way. The project, which is to be directed by the Institute for Gas Technology (IGT) under contract to the U.S. Department of Energy, will involve subcontracts with a number of universities and companies and will continue for three years. Although proceeding with little fanfare, the project is but one example of recent attempts to develop needed alternative energy technologies for the future. At the core of the program is development of a pressurized fluidizedbed hydroretorting (PFH) process designed by IGT. The proposed PFH process combines IGTs experience in both fluidization and shale retorting. IGT has been active for many years in developing coal gasification processes and, more recently, in developing processes for the utilization of eastern oil shale as an alternative energy source. The principal product of t h e project will be data for the development and optimization of the PFH process for both raw and beneficiated eastern shale. IGT also will develop specific databases for key eastern shales. Participating in the project with IGT are Illinois Institute of Technology, the University of Michigan, Ohio State University, the University of Pittsburgh, Tennessee Technical University, the University of Alabama's Mineral Resources Institute, and Energy & Minerals Research Co. Much of the university contribution to the project will be concentrated on developing techniques for removal of sulfur, nitrogen, and fines from the shale and in evaluating the environmental impact of the proposed process. Some are also interested in recovering leachable metals from eastern shale. The University of Alabama's Mineral Resources Institute will be responsible for developing more efficient and economical techniques for the beneficiation of eastern shale. It will direct cooperative activities in that area at the University of Pitts-
burgh and at Energy & Minerals Research Co. At the completion of the project, DOE expects to have enough information to construct and operate an integrated process d e v e l o p m e n t pilot unit incorporating the PFH process. Hydrotreating involves heating shale in a hydrogen atmosphere. The technique has been studied for more than a decade as a way to increase oil yield from eastern shales, which have a lower hydrogen content than that of the higher-yield western shales. Eastern shales appear to be more abundant but of generally lower yield, and hydroretorting is considered necessary for competitive reasons. Most of the early hydroretorting processes employed kiln technology in which large particles of shale were exposed to a countercurrent of hydrogen-rich gas. Although this resulted in increased yields, further improvements were necessary. One improvement is the fluidized-bed technology proposed by IGT. In the course of the project, IGT will study the possible advantages of staging the fluidized retorting zone to enhance heat recovery. If successful, this effort could result in a second-generation shale retorting process. During the oil crisis of the 1970s, w h e n a near panic atmosphere prevailed in the alternative energy business, much attention was focused on utilization of the richer deposits of western oil shale, particularly in Utah and Colorado. About a dozen processes were proposed and a number of them were actually piloted before the panic subsided and they were subsequently shutdown. In the interim, eastern oil shale deposits were rediscovered. Their proximity to eastern energy markets, with a decided transportation advantage, appeared to compensate for the generally lower yields. It now appears that both eastern and western shales have advantages that could be exploited, despite drastic cuts in development funds in recent years. Joseph Haggin,
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Chicago January 25, 1988 C&EN
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