Coal handleability: Addressing the concerns of the electric utility industry

Over 600 million tons of coal are handled annually for use by the country's coal-fired power plants. Coal is transported in various ways: overland conveyors, railcars, trucks, and barges. It can travel short distances or thousands of miles, picking up moisture, freezing, or drying. When the coal is received at the power plant, environmental problems with fugitive dust and further handling problems can arise. This report discusses utility coal handling concerns. The program has identified key areas of concern, and has begun to investigate the cost and cause of and the solutions to coal handling problems. The ultimate goal of the program is to develop a handleability index'' for utilities to use in their coal specifications or hardware for a utility's sampling system to predict handleability and determine if a coal shipment should be accepted. 17 refs., 5 figs., 3 tabs.