Oxidation Experiment of Coal Spontaneous Combustion Model Compounds

Theories on coal spontaneous combustion were proposed by several scholars since the 17 th century. The coal-oxygen complex effect theory is widely accepted by researchers at present. However, this theory still can not detailed explains the mechanism of the coal-oxygen combination. The coal is different from the other general polymer or compound. The molecular structure and composition of coal is extremely complex and irregular, which causes the disturbance in experimental test of coal spontaneous combustion. In order to solve this problem, the study applies the small-molecule model compound oxidation to simulate the coal macromolecular structure oxidation. Seven kinds of model compounds were selected to study coal spontaneous combustion according to the theories of coal spontaneous combustion and the molecule structure of coal. Oxidation products of model compounds were qualitative and quantitative tested by test devices and gas chromatographs. The results show that model compounds oxidation produce carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, benzene and phenol, etc. Furthermore, the experiments of coal samples as the same experimental condition as the model compounds were implemented for comparison of the oxidation products. The concentration of benzene and phenol in model compounds oxidation products is calculated by external reference method. It is demonstrated that the oxidation processes and properties of the model compounds are consistent with the coal, which provides references for explaining the mechanism of coal spontaneous combustion in chemical view.