"COAL MINING" COAL, the most ABUNDANT ENERGY SOURCE in the WORLD--BLACK LUNG DISEASE !

     Coal the most abundant energy source in the world and a major source of hydrecarbons especially gas. Coal is a fossil fuel created from the remains of plants that lived and died about 400 million years ago. Under extreme heat and pressure, this plant matter underwent chemical and physical changes, pushing out oxygen and leaving rich hydrocarbons deposits. What once had been plants gradually turned into coal. Seams of coal are found ranging in thickness from less than an inch to many, many feet high. The Pittsburgh seam of coal for example is seven feet high.One acre of the Pittsburgh seam of coal produces about 15,000 tons of coal.

"Coal mining" is done in two ways, Surface or (strip) mining and Underground or (deep) mining. Coal is classified into four types depending on the amount of hydrogen, oxygen and carbon that is present in the coal. (1) Lignite is the lowest classified coal. (2)Sub-Bituminous coal has less heating value than Bituminous Coal. (3) Bituminous Coal or (soft coal) is the most abundant coal and has three times the heating value of Lignite coal. (4) Anthracite Coal or (hard coal) is a big energy producer, having about 97% carbon. Anthracite is found in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

The extracted coal is first sent to a preparation plant (coal washer) to be cleaned and washed. The cleaned coal is then sent to another processing plant to remove the rocks, slate, dirt, sulfur, ash and any other impurities thus increasing the heating value of the coal. This cleaned coal will be loaded onto coal barges that were docked on the shores of the Monongahela River and when fully loaded a tug boat will hook up to the loaded coal barges and proceed north toward Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Monongahela River begins in Fairmont, West Virginia and flows 128 miles in a Northerly direction to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where it meets the Allegheny River to form the mighty Ohio River. Along the trip to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania the loaded coal barges will be delivered to various Steel Mills and Coke Ovens for processing.

The top "coal mining" producing states in the United States of America in this order are #1-Wyoming, #2-West Virginia, #3- Kentucky, #4-Pennsylvania and #5-Texas.

Coal Bed Methane (CMB) is a simple methane found in coal seams. The presence of this gas has been recognized for a long time due to explosions and outbursts associated with underground "coal mining". Methane (CH4) is a relatively potent greenhouse gas. Methane is a colorless, odorless gas with a wide distribution in nature.

The "firedamp" of coal mines is a very combustible gas, chiefly methane. Firedamp is a flammable gas found in coal mines. It is the name given to a number of flammable gases, especially methane. It is particularly commonly found in areas where the coal is bituminous. The firedamp accumulates in pockets in the coal and adajant strata and when they are penetrated, the release of methane gas can trigger explosions in the mine.

Sir Humphry Davy (1778-1829) a British chemist developed the Davy Lamp to detect the amount of methane gas in the area where coal is being extracted by the miners. The Davy Lamp measures the height of the cone of burning methane in a Flame Safety Lamp, to estimate the concentration of the methane gas in the local atmosphere. The higher the concentration of methane gas the more likely that a spark from the miners tools can set off a methane gas explosion in the underground mine. COAL MINE EXPOLSION !

Black Lung Disease (pneumoconiosis) is a chronic occupational lung disease contracted by prolonged breathing of "coal mining" dust. Black Lung Disease is a common affliction of coal miners. Inhaled coal dust progressively builds up in the coal miners lungs and can not be removed by the body which leads to inflammation, fibrosis and in the worst cases, necrosis.

In the 1950's the dangers of Black Lung Disease were not well recognized. Silicosis was considered very serious but it was thought that it was caused solely by Silica and not just coal dust. At this time, the United Mine Workers Union realized that the rapid mechanization of apparatus used to extract coal, such as drills, coal cutting machines and coal loaders would produce more coal dust and hence more Black Lung Victums.

John L. Lewis, president of the United Mine Workers Union decided not to raise the Black Lung issue at that time because it might impede the mechanization that was producing higher amounts of coal and higher wages. At the time, early 1950's the UMW prioities were to maintain the viability of the Long-Fought for Welfare and Retirement Fund.

The United Mine Workers of America was founded in Columbus, Ohio in 1890 by the merger of the Labor Trade Assembly #135 and the National Progressive Union of miners and mine laborers. The constitution adopted by the delegates to the first UMWA convention barred discrimination based on Race, Religion or National Origin. The UMWA founding fathers clearly recognized the destructive power of discrimination at a time when racism and ethnic discrimination were accepted facts in some parts of the American Culture.

 ON EASTER MONDAY, APRIL 5, 2010, AT A WEST VIRGINIA COAL MINE BLAST KILLS SIX (6) MINERS and 21 MINERS ARE UNACCOUNTED FOR. THE EXPLOSION IN THE MINE IS UNDER INVESTIGATION AND THERE IS A GOOD CHANCE THE EXPLOSION WAS CAUSED BY METHANE GAS.

PLEASE PRAY FOR THEIR FAMILIES !!

Coking is the term used for making Coal Coke. Coal Coke or Fuel Coke is silver gray in color, very hard and extremely porous. Coal Coke is the end profuct from coking.  Bituminous Coal is burned in coke ovens with temperatures reaching 2000 degrees celsius for eighteen hours in order to remove or burn off all volatile material and impurities. This process is called coking.  The yield per ton or 2000 pounds of bituminous coal is 1200 to 1400 pounds of coal coke. 

Steel mills use coal coke as a fuel and as a reducing agent in smelting iron ore in big blast furnaces. Coal coke may be burned in these steel making blast furnaces with little or no smoke under combustion conditions whereas bituminous coal if burned would produce copious amounts of smoke and impurities.  The smoke and impurities from burning raw coal would make the resulting steel a very poor quality steel.

In 1885 the Rochester and Pittsburgh Coal and Iron Company constructed the world's longest string of coke ovens in Walston, Pennsylvania, with 475 coke ovens over a length of one and a quarter miles long.   

The Massey Energy Company of Montcoal, West Virginia, ignored violations and warnings that the Upper Big Branch Mine, which they owned, was not safe for "coal mining". As a result, a Methane Gas Exposion left 29 miners dead. The Federal Government is going to come down hard on those companies who Ignore Safety Violations by shutting the Coal MIne down. The Greed and Easy money by The Massey Energy Company has left 29 "coal mining" Families without an income. We are a Bailout Nation. How can we get help for these families?