THE STORY OF A PIECE OF COAL: WHAT IT IS, WHENCE IT COMES, AND WHITHER IT GOES
1 Overview of the Synthetic Fuel Industry 1 1 Introductory 1 2 Global Energy Situation 1910–90s: Energy Crises and Revivals 3 3 Impact of Hydraulic Fracturing (Fracking) Revolution on Natural Petroleum and Synthetic Fuel Production 5 4 Scientific and Engineering Advances in Synthetic Fuel Research and Development 10 5 Economics and Politics of Synthetic Fuel Development 12 6 Chapter Titles and Summaries 14 7 A Note on Sources 18 2 Friedrich Bergius, Franz Fischer and Hans Tropsch: The Rise of the German Synthetic Fuel Industry 21 1 Introductory 21 2 Hydrogenation Begins 24 3 First Industrial Application of High-Pressure Hydrogenation 28 4 Friedrich Bergius: Background to High-Pressure Coal Hydrogenation 31 41 Early Studies on the Composition of Coal 37 42 New Method for Producing Hydrogen Gas 40 43 Early Experiments on Coal Hydrogenation 42 44 Moves to Essen and Rheinau: World War I 47 45 International Development of the Bergius Process 58 46 Bergius’s Related Scientific Projects and Later Activities 64 5 IG Farben Process and Its Industrialization in Germany 68 6 Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis 70 61 Early Development of the F-T Synthesis: Catalysts, Reaction Conditions, and Converters 71 7 Conclusion 77 3 Germany’s Synthetic Fuel Industry 1927–45 78 1 Introductory 78 2 Germany’s Energy Plan 80 3 BASF-IG Farben’s Coal Hydrogenation Program 84 31 Period of Development: Synthesis of Ammonia and Methanol 84 32 Hydrogenation at Ludwigshafen 1924–27 87 33 Hydrogenation 1927–32: Beginning of Leuna 95 34 Engineering and the Economics of Hydrogenation 98 35 International Developments: IG Farben-Standard Oil Connection 100 36 Research and Development at IG Farben in the 1930s–40s: Technical Advances 108 37 Germany’s Coal Hydrogenation Industry 1933–39 113 38 Germany’s Coal Hydrogenation Industry 1939–45 126 4 Industrial Development of the F-T Synthesis 138 5 Summary of Synthetic Fuel Industrial Development in Germany 1927–45 157 6 Labor Force in the Synthetic Fuel Plants 161 7 Conclusion 165 4 From Birmingham to Billingham: High-Pressure Coal Hydrogenation in Great Britain 167 1 Introductory 167 2 Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis and the Beginning of Coal Hydrogenation in Britain: Birmingham 170 3 Coal Hydrogenation at the Fuel Research Station 182 4 Influence of Variables on the Conversion Process 187 5 Development of a Small-Size Continuous Plant 188 6 ICI and the Billingham Plant 190 7 Politics and Economics 195 8 Conclusion 203 5 Synthetic Fuel Production in Prewar and World War II Japan: A Study in Technological Failure 205 1 Introductory 205 2 Overview of Japan’s Coal Conversion Processes, Seven Year Energy Plan 206 3 Development of Japan’s Oil Shale, Derived and Synthetic Liquid Fuel Sources to 1930 211 4 Government Support of Japan’s Synthetic Fuel Industry 220 5 Oil Shale and LTC Emerge as Major Sources of Liquid Fuel 228 6 Research and Development of the Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis: A Promising Beginning 238 7 Coal Hydrogenation: High Hopes but Little Success 244 8 Japan’s IG Farben Connection 251 9 Conclusion 259 6 Canada’s Mines Branch and Its Synthetic Fuel Program for Energy Independence 262 1 Introductory 262 2 Early Concern for Fuel Supply 264 3 Synthetic Fuel Research at the Mines Branch 273 4 Wartime Developments on Synthetic Fuel 280 5 Postwar Developments on Oil Sands Separation 282 6 The Blair Report, Athabasca Conference, and the State of Canadian Fuel Research 286 7 Canada’s Changing Energy Situation 292 8 Conclusion 300 7 The United States Bureau of Mines’ Synthetic Fuel Program 1920s–50s: German Connections and American Advances 302 1 Introductory 302 2 Early Bureau of Mines, European, and Japanese Research and Development of Derived and Synthetic Liquid Fuel 306 3 Liquid Fuel Developments in the United States 314 4 Development of the F-T Synthesis 318 5 Early Research on Coal Hydrogenation 322 6 Coal Hydrogenation and F-T Synthesis at the Bureau of Mines, the Synthetic Liquid Fuels Act of 1944 325 7 The Demonstration Synthetic Fuel Plants in Louisiana, Missouri 334 8 Industrial Development of F-T and Coal Hydrogenation 346 9 Concluding the Bureau’s Synthetic Fuel Program 348 8 Epilogue: Post-World War II Synthetic Fuel Development and the Emergence of Environmental Concerns 353 1 Introductory 353 2 Pre-World War II Small-Scale Synthetic Fuel Developments: Italy and France 1920s–40s 355 3 Post-World War II Synthetic Fuel Developments: Sasol 1950s–2000s 357 4 Post-World War II Synthetic Fuel Developments: United States 1960s–80s 358 5 Fossil Fuel, Synthetic Fuel, the Environment 367 51 Fossil Fuel, Synthetic Fuel Impact on Environment 367 52 Environmental Impact: Climate Change-Global Warming and Acid Rain 369 6 Oil Crises 1990s, Oil Shale Fracking Revolution and Its Consequences 379 7 Conclusion 381