CCP Program Awarded $1.6 Million for Clean Coal Research

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The Ohio Coal Development Office Technical Advisory Committee granted the funds to Dr. Tarunjit Butalia, research scientist and coordinator of the statewide Coal Combustion Products Program at Ohio State, and William Wolfe, professor of civil, environmental and geodetic engineering, to conduct the research. The objective of the project is to demonstrate in the field that the byproducts, stabilized sulfite FGD material and FGD gypsum, produced from scrubbing coal can be beneficially used in large volumes for reclamation and to show how these byproducts can remediate acid mine drainage at Ohio coal mine locations.

"The widespread use of such byproduct methods would promote Ohio coal, reduce environmental and safety hazards, prevent landfill expansion, and reclaim land for recreation and economic development," said Butalia. He added that the proposed work saves money by reclaiming abandoned sites with a low-cost material.

The research is being conducted near American Electric Power’s Gavin plant near Cheshire, Ohio. The total project cost is more than $6.7 million, and Ohio State is partnering with Ohio companies Resource International, Baker’s Enviro Services and Technology, Haley & Aldrich, and AEP as well as GSE Environmental; Harold Walker of Stony Brook University, State University of New York; and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

The Ohio Coal Development Office invests in the development and implementation of technologies that can use Ohio’s vast reserves of coal in an economical, environmentally sound manner. Funding is still available for projects that develop technologies to improve coal combustion efficiency, reduce pollution emissions, develop productive uses for the byproducts of coal combustion or investigate new processes to enable the efficient conversion of Ohio coal as a feedstock.

Category: Research