What do power companies mean by “clean coal”?
As jeffhoard had pointed out, “clean coal” may refer to coal burning processes that rely on carbon capture and storage to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide that is released into the atmosphere, and is generally what folks in the media are referring to. He also touched a bit on coal washing. As he also had pointed out, there are other meanings to the term. “Clean coal” can also reference harder types of coal (e.g. anthracite), which tend to contain less sulfur and produce more energy and less pollutants when burned than softer types of coal (e.g. bituminous coal and lignite). Though, harder coals are rarer than softer coals in terms of their occurrence in the earth. Pennsylvania has one of the largest deposits of anthracite on Earth, but it sure doesn’t help matters much that some of these veins have been burning underground for more than four decades. “Clean coal” may also refer also refer to fitting the flues of coal-powered plants with “scrubbers.” Scrubbers are used to reduce the
