Coal assay Coal assay Coal analysis techniques are specific analytical methods designed to measure the particular physical and chemical properties of coals. These methods are used primarily to determine the suitability of coal for coking, power generation or for iron ore smelting in the manufacture of steel. Coal comes in four main types or ranks: lignite or brown coal, bituminous coal or black coal, anthracite and graphite. Each type of coal has a certain set of physical parameters which are mostly controlled by moisture, volatile content (in terms of aliphatic or aromatic hydrocarbons) and carbon content. Moisture is an important property of
Carbon disulfide Carbon disulfide Carbon disulfide is a colorless volatile liquid with the formula CS. The compound is used frequently as a building block in organic chemistry as well as an industrial and chemical non-polar solvent. It has an "ether-like" odor, but commercial samples are typically contaminated with foul-smelling impurities. Small amounts of carbon disulfide are released by volcanic eruptions and marshes. CS once was manufactured by combining carbon (or coke) and sulfur at high temperatures. A lower-temperature reaction, requiring only 600 °C, utilizes natural gas as the carbon source in the presence of silica gel or alumina catalysts: The reaction is