Examination of resolidification and carbonization mechanism of coking and non- or slightly-caking coals during coke production

Under the recent tight supply-demand situation for caking coal, it is important and urgent to develop technologies which enable the utilization of low grade coal as much as possible for the production of metallurgical coke. To meet with the urgent and important demand, members of the Iron and Steel Institute of Japan (I$IJ) have been actively engaging in the development of new technologies utilizing low grade coal as metallurgical coke feedstock. The research workshop "Research and Development for Low Grade Coal Utilization Technology for Cokemaking", which lasted 2002-2005, has examined the mechanism of resolidification and carbonization of coking and non- or slightly-caking coals by using sophisticated analytical techniques that are widely employed in the field of carbon science. In this review the results obtained are briefly introduced, and the difference and similarity of the mechanism of resolidification and carbonization between caking and slightly caking coals are discussed.