Coal Gas Generation

Maximization of Fuel Resources

MWM has developed gas engines and power generators especially for coal-mine methane (CMM). Implementing methods to use this gas as an alternative fuel can help:

• Improve mine safety

• Reduce carbon dioxide release into the atmosphere

• Reduce electrical energy costs and generate income

Coal Mine Gas – Ecological and Economically Attractive

Coal-mine methane emerges as a by-product of coal formations within underground coal seams and is discharged prior to or during active coal extraction. On a global scale, coal mines release methane gas at levels roughly equivalent to 400 million tons (28 billion cubic meters) of carbon dioxide. This is analogous to the energy consumption of 818 million barrels of oil or the carbon dioxide emissions of 64 million passenger vehicles.

The emissions of coal mine methane can be substantially reduced by recovering and utilizing the vented gas through methane gas energy projects. This collected coal mine methane (CMM) is harnessed as fuel within reciprocating gas engine generator sets. This well-established and validated technology offers remarkable efficiency in both gas mitigation and power production. Post-recovery, the CMM is stored within sizeable containers and subject to pretreatment to make it suitable for gas engines. This preparatory process involves filtering out dust and particles, drying the gas, and transporting it via pressure-regulated fuel pipelines to the on-site generator sets.

Coal-bed methane (CBM), coal-mine methane (CMM), and abandoned mine methane (AMM) are all viable for utilization in gas engines, owing to their substantial methane content ranging from 30 to 95 percent. However, ventilation air methane (VAM) contains CH4 content between 0.2 and 1.5 percent, rendering it unsuitable for power generation in gas engines.

Through the use of coal mine gas with methane concentrations of up to 30 percent, methane, which is harmful to the environment and would otherwise be released into the atmosphere, can be converted into useful energy.

Employing coal mine gas in a gas engine provides dual benefits. Firstly, the combustion process transforms methane into carbon dioxide, which is significantly less environmentally detrimental—up to 25 times less harmful. Secondly, as much as 90 percent of the energy contained within methane can be effectively converted into both electricity and heat.

Our Gas Engines for Coal-Mine Methane Offer:

• Customized motor controls for managing the constant fluctuations of the methane gas content

• A fuel system that can process gas with the very low pressure typical to mining pit venting systems