Characterization of catalytically hydrogenated and pyrolysis coal products. A comparative study of several analytical procedures

Abstract Liquids and residues obtained from coal by hydroliquefaction and pyrolysis are extremely complex mixtures. They consist mainly of saturated and aromatic polycyclic hydrocarbons. O, S and N heterocycles and polar compounds are also present. Depending on the type of information desired for the sample (s), different separation, fractionation and identification schemes can be chosen. The methods described here were developed for a comparative study of samples obtained under various conditions of hydroliquefaction. Some of these methods were applied to tars and pitches of coal carbonization at low and high temperatures.