Water Pollution Control for Underground Coal Gasification

Abstract

Water pollution arising from underground gasification of coal is one of the important considerations in the eventual commercialization of the process. Because many coal seams which are amenable to in situ gasification are also ground‐water aquifers, contaminants may be released to these ground waters during and after gasification. Also, when product gas is processed above ground for use, wastewater streams are generated which are too polluted to be discharged. The purpose of this paper is to characterize the nature of the groundwater and above‐ground pollutants, discuss the potential long and short‐term effects on ground water, propose control and restoration strategies, and to identify potential wastewater treatment schemes.