Fine characterization of pore structure of acidified anthracite based on liquid intrusion method and Micro-CT

• Published in: Energy (Oxford) 2023-01, Vol.263, p.125639, Article 125639
• Main Authors: Yongzan, Wen, Guanhua, Ni, Xinyue, Zhang, Yicheng, Zheng, Gang, Wang, Zhenyang, Wang, Qiming, Huang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acid treatment; Coordination number; Fractal characteristic; Pore morphology; Pore size distribution
• ISSN: 0360-5442
• DOI: 10.1016/j.energy.2022.125639

Acidification erosion can seriously affect the pore structure characteristics of anthracite. In this paper, the low-temperature nitrogen adsorption method, mercury intrusion method, and Micro-CT scanning are used to analyze the pore structure of coal samples. The microscopic morphology and spatial distribution of coal pores are characterized by fractal dimension calculation and three-dimensional reconstruction. The results show that HCl has the highest removal efficiency of minerals in the Yuwu coal sample, which reduces the mass of coal samples by about 4%. HNO3 increases the proportion of micropore volume by 4.93%. HCl increases the proportion of mesoporous pore volume by 11.4%. Through the 3D reconstruction of coal, it is found that the mineral content in coal decreased by 48.14% after HCl dissolution, and the maximum diameter of mineral particles decreased from 173.588 μm to 57.449 μm. The spatial distribution of minerals is uneven, and the mineral content of coal samples decreases significantly along the direction of strong fluidity. At the same time, HCl increases the pore connectivity of coal samples, the pore roar increases by 56.72%, the isolated pores decrease, and the peak frequency of pore coordination number increases by 4 units, which greatly improves the transport capacity of fluid in coal matrix. •The pore expansion mechanism of acidified coal is being further studied.•Liquid intrusion method and Micro-CT scanning are applied to study pore structure.•The changes of pore morphology are described by fractal dimension.•Spatial law of pores and minerals are revealed by 3D reconstruction technology.