In-situ study of fractal properties of coal char particles during catalytic gasification

Interactions of potassium-based catalysts with Shenfu (SF) char during catalytic gasification was observed by an in-situ heating stage microscope. The effects of the gasification temperature (800−900 °C) and the catalyst loading (4.4%, 10%) on the reactivity of coal char were investigated. The heating stage microscopy was used to visualize the catalytic gasification process of coal char particles and the fractal theory was introduced to analyze the surface structure of coal char particles to reveal the gasification reactivity. The experimental results show that the fractal dimension of coal char particles is positively correlated with the carbon conversion rate, and the fractal dimension increases by increasing the gasification temperature and the catalyst loading. The relationship between the initial gasification reaction rate and the fractal dimension of coal char particles is consistent with that between the carbon conversion rate and the fractal dimension of coal char particles. There is an exponential relation between the fractal dimension of coal char and the char angle; the fractal dimension increases with the increase of coal char particle angle; and the fractal dimension of coal char particles can be used in the study of coal char catalytic gasification process.