Coal Facts

Coal is the most abundant fuel in the world. At current rates of consumption, Canada has a 900 year supply of coal and a 30 year supply of natural gas. For this reason, using coal as your fuel of choice can give you the best price stability in both the short and long term.

The four ranks of coal are anthracite, bituminous, sub-bituminous, and lignite. These are distinguished primarily by their percentage of fixed carbon and heating value. Bituminous, sub-bituminous, and lignite coals are the types of coal recommended in our stoker systems. These types of coals are the most plentiful with numerous mines across western Canada and United States.

The dryer the coal, the less heat you will need to waste drying the coal. Cheaper coal is not necessarily the most economical. For this reason, our recommendation is using a bituminous or sub-bituminous coal. The high moisture content and low heating value of lignite may increase the maintenance required on a furnace and increase the cost of heating as compared to other coals.

Analysis of some North American Coal

Lignite

Source	Moisture	Ash	Volatile Matter	Fixed Carbon	Heat Value
Montana	37.5%	6.1%	26.8%	29.6%	6578 BTU/lb
North Dakota	36.8%	5.1%	28.2%	29.3%	7180 BTU/lb
South Dakota	39.2%	8.4%	24.7%	37.7%	6320 BTU/lb
Texas	33.7%	7.3%	29.3%	29.7%	7352 BTU/lb
Ontario	46.7%	7.4%	30.2%	16%	5288 BTU/lb
Saskatchewan	33.5%	6.7%	24%	35.8%	7567 BTU/lb

Sub-Bituminous

Source	Moisture	Ash	Volatile Matter	Fixed Carbon	Heat Value
Wyoming	23.4%	3.6%	33.6%	39.4%	9372 BTU/lb
Alberta	15%	6.3%	33.3%	45.4%	10877 BTU/lb

Bituminous

Source	Moisture	Ash	Volatile Matter	Fixed Carbon	Heat Value
Utah	7.5%	5.6%	39.7%	47.2%	12510 BTU/lb
Illinois	7.9%	9.1%	40.7%	42.3%	11521 BTU/lb
British Columbia	6.7%	11.3%	34.8%	47.2%	11694 BTU/lb
Alberta	7.4%	7.1%	32.1%	53.4%	11651 BTU/lb
Pennsylvania	3.4%	5.3%	35.9%	55.4%	13714 BTU/lb
Nova Scotia	4%	8.4%	32.2%	55.4%	13327 BTU/lb

Anthracite

Source	Moisture	Ash	Volatile Matter	Fixed Carbon	Heat Value
Pennsylvania	3.2%	11.5%	9.3%	76%	13027 BTU/lb

Source: Applied Chemistry for Engineers, H.D. Gesser, 1991