Research Team: Dr. Arash Tahmasebi (University of Newcastle), A/Prof. Pramod Koshy, Dr. Apsara Jayasekara (University of Newcastle), Mr. Kim Hockings (BHP), Mr. Stephen Brant (BHP)
Industry Partner: BHP and University of Newcastle
Timeframe: 2021 – 2022
Objectives
Outcomes
Objectives
- Investigate the impacts of microalgae (Chlorella Vulgaris) addition on coking performance through the production of samples in a 4 kg coke oven
- Determination of the gasification behaviour and properties of the resultant biocokes under simulated blast furnace conditions
Outcomes
- Blending of coals with microalgae showed minimal adverse effect on the viscosity of the plastic phase; the absence of a fibrous structure in the micrographs suggested the microalgae conversion to a fluid state which allowed its integration with the coal during the plastic stage
- Under the simulated BF condition, the coke reactivity showed increasing yet tolerable reactivity with microalgae and this could be attributed to the increasing basicity index of the coke and the presence of isotropic components
- The CSR/CRI and cold strengths of bio-cokes showed a minimum impact of microalgae addition even at 10 wt% microalgae addition but this correlation was dependent on coal rank
- Microalgae blending with high-rank premium coals is a promising approach for reducing the carbon footprint associated with the BF process without compromising coke quality significantly