Liquid products of the alkaline activation of brown coal from the Aleksandriiskoe deposit

The liquid products of the alkaline activation of brown coal from the Aleksandriiskoe deposit (800°C; 1 h; activator, KOH) were studied by thermal analysis, IR spectroscopy, and 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy. They were formed in ∼30% yield; they consisted of pyrogenic water (∼50%) and a resinous mixture of organic substances with increased hydrogen and oxygen contents and decreased carbon and sulfur contents. On heating, potassium hydroxide completely decomposed the quinoid structures of coal, decreased the concentration of aromatic components in resin, and increased the concentrations of CH3-, -CH2-, and OH-groups. This is consistent with the well-known thermally initiated reactions of alkaline degradation and dehydrogenation at high temperatures (400–800°C). The thermal lability of resinous products was evaluated, and the heats of combustion (32.4–32.7 MJ/kg) were determined; the latter values indicate that these products can be used as fuel.