‘Coal’ and ‘China’ to some extent have become synonymous. China is by far the largest user of coal in the world. In 2016, coal production in China amounted to 3.21 billion tons, about half of the total global coal production. Coal consumption accounts for more than 65% of primary energy consumption in China. The Chinese coal industry greatly contributes to the economic development in China, the second largest economy in the world. However, periodically, ubiquitous images of smog blanketing major Chinese cities are viewed all over the world. Coal combustion is one of the important contributors to smog, which is considered to be a major environmental and human health problem for China and other countries. News stories also highlight the periodic coal mine disasters that kill hundreds of Chinese coal miners annually. The need to address these and other human health, environmental, and mine safety issues and to maximize resource recovery and use justifies a vigorous coal research effort. This book brings together experts on almost every aspect of coal geology, coal production, composition and use of the coal and its by-products, and coal’s environmental and human health impacts.
The chapters in this book were originally published in a special issue of the International Geology Review.
1. Coal geology in China: an overview Shifeng Dai and Robert B. Finkelman 2. Coal production in China: past, present, and future projections Xiangfei Bai, Hua Ding, Jinjing Lian, Dong Ma, Xiaoyu Yang, Nanxiang Sun, Wenlin Xue and Yijun Chang 3. The geologic settings of Chinese coal deposits Zengxue Li, Dongdong Wang, Dawei Lv, Ying Li, Haiyan Liu, Pingli Wang, Ying Liu, Jianqiang Liu and Dandan Li 4. The health impacts of coal use in China Robert B. Finkelman and Linwei Tian 5. Valuable elements in Chinese coals: a review Shifeng Dai, Xiaoyun Yan, Colin R. Ward, James C. Hower, Lei Zhao, Xibo Wang, Lixin Zhao, Deyi Ren and Robert B. Finkelman 6. Geochemistry of uranium in Chinese coals and the emission inventory of coal-fired power plants in China Jian Chen, Ping Chen, Duoxi Yao, Wenhui Huang, Shuheng Tang, Kejian Wang, Wenzhong Liu, Youbiao Hu, Qingguang Li and Ruwei Wang 7. Emission controls of mercury and other trace elements during coal combustion in China: a review Yongchun Zhao, Jianping Yang, Siming Ma, Shibo Zhang, Huan Liu, Bengen Gong, Junying Zhang and Chuguang Zheng 8. A review on the applications of coal combustion products in China Jing Li, Xinguo Zhuang, Xavier Querol, Oriol Font and Natalia Moreno 9. Mineralogy and geochemistry of ash and slag from coal gasification in China: a review Shuqin Liu, Chuan Qi, Zhe Jiang, Yanjun Zhang, Maofei Niu, Yuanyuan Li, Shifeng Dai and Robert B. Finkelman 10. Stone coal in China: a review Shifeng Dai, Xue Zheng, Xibo Wang, Robert B. Finkelman, Yaofa Jiang, Deyi Ren, Xiaoyun Yan and Yiping Zhou 11. CO2 storage in coal to enhance coalbed methane recovery: a review of field experiments in China Zhejun Pan, Jianping Ye, Fubao Zhou, Yuling Tan, Luke D. Connell and Jingjing Fan 12. Resources and geology of coalbed methane in China: a review Yong Qin, Tim A. Moore, Jian Shen, Zhaobiao Yang, Yulin Shen and Geoff Wang
Biography
Shifeng Dai is a Professor at the China University of Mining and Technology, China. His research fields include coal geology and coal geochemistry. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Coal Geology, the Chief Scientist of the National Key Basic Research Program of China, Changjiang Scholar Professor of Ministry of Education (China) and the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars of China.
Robert B. Finkelman retired in 2005 after 32 years with the U.S. Geological Survey. He is currently a Research Professor in the Geosciences Department at the University of Texas at Dallas, USA, and an Adjunct Professor at the China University of Geosciences (Beijing). He is an internationally recognized scientist widely known for his work on coal chemistry and as a leader of the emerging field of Medical Geology.
