Influence of Moisture on the Spontaneous Heating of Coal

Abstract

RESEARCH into the spontaneous heating of coal has been concerned in the past with three well-defined problems. These are measurements of rates of oxidation of coal, measurements of heat produced by oxidation and thirdly the establishment and solution of differential equations describing rises in temperature in oxidizing coal. Recently, measurements of the heat of oxidation of coal in air of controlled humidity have been reported and also heats of desorption and adsorption of water vapour1,2. © 1960 Nature Publishing Group.