The application of fluorescence microscopy to coal-derived resid characterization

Fluorescence microscopy has commonly been employed in coal and kerogen characterization, but has not been widely used in liquefaction process development research. This study applies existing quantitative fluorescence microscopical techniques to non-distillable coal liquids (resid) from the Wilsonville CC-ITSL pilot plant, and the HRI ebullated bed bench unit. Acquisition of fluorescence spectra from the resids was accomplished utilizing a microscope spectrophotometer interfaced with a personal computer. Experimental results for the resids were interpreted in the context of processing conditions, inferred resid reactivity, and in relation to other analytical data. It is concluded that fluorescence intensity and, particularly, the spectral distribution can potentially provide new insight into the structure, composition and reactivity of coal-derived resid, and could lead to more effective process control.