Shell Oil Comapny

Shell Mining Company

Mark A Siddoway

William C Machmer

James A Salter

Lloyd Anthony Clomburg, Jr

Donald E Hardesty

Steven Paul Giles

Karl Gregory Anderson

Walter Farman Farmayan

Abdul Wahid Munshi

Timothy S Westby

Kuochen Tsai

Robert P Deschner

Joseph Phillip Brignac, Jr

John R King

Faraz Abbasi

Neal D Stidham

A gas burner assembly for heating a subsurface formation includes an oxidant conduit, a fuel conduit, and a plurality of oxidizers coupled to the oxidant conduit. At least one of the oxidizers includes a mix chamber for mixing fuel from the fuel conduit with oxidant from the oxidant conduit, an igniter, and a shield. The shield includes a plurality of openings in communication with the oxidant conduit. At least one flame stabilizer is coupled to the shield.

Downhole burner systems and methods for heating subsurface formations

The spontaneous ignition of low rank coal is inhibited by spraying coal with an aqueous solution of an oxidizing agent which contains combined oxygen, drying oxidizing agent-sprayed coal and cooling the dried coal.

Low rank coal by wet oxidizing, drying and cooling

A method for upgrading coal in-situ is disclosed in which a treatment zone is established around an energy source placed in a cavity within a coal seam and the pore structure of the coal substantially irreversibly collapses as moisture is driven off. The energy source provides either evaporative energy such as heat or a combination of heat and pressure in-situ. Resorption of water returning to the treatment zone during cooling of the coal prior to mining is limited due to the pore collapse.

In-situ coal drying

Wet coal is processed in a dryer, producing dry, hot coal. More wet coal is blended with the dry, hot coal and the mixture is processed in a cooler, resulting in a cool, blended dry coal.

Cooling of dried coal

An elongated slot dryer is disclosed for drying wet solid particulate material. The slot dryer is constructed in the form of a trench with at least one aperture outlet at the bottom of the trench formed by two non-connecting walls. The wet particulate material (coal) enters through the top and exits through the bottom aperture while countercurrently contacting a drying fluid emitted through perforations situated in a drying fluid access means or conduit located substantially throughout the entire length of the slot dryer. The perforations in the fluid access means or conduit are limited to the bottom one half of the fluid access means relative to the aperture outlet to ensure that drying fluid is passed at first in a downward direction and then gently turns upward to countercurrent contact with the wet descending particles. An underlying conveyor will act to continuously remove the relatively dried particulate material passing through the aperture outlet. The elongated slot dryer provides an extremely efficient use of the drying fluid while eliminating problems of pressure drop throughout the slot trench drying vessel.

Elongated slot dryer for wet particulate material

Coal dusting is controlled by spraying the coal with a relatively viscous aqueous solution of sugar or sugar and other components of sugar-forming plants.

Process for suppressing the dusting of coal

Growing community of inventors

Houston, TX, United States of America

Mark A Siddoway