The alkylation of high rank coals. Non-covalent bonding interactions

Abstract

The alkylation of six high rank bituminous coals was carried out in the presence of hydroxide ions. Five of the six coals showed remarkable increase in pyridine extractability after O-butylation but only modest changes after O-methylation. The sixth coal showed high pyridine solubility after C-butylation. Several lines of argument suggest that hydrogen bonding interactions are not responsible for this result, rather the steric requirements of the butyl groups diminish non-covalent bonding interactions between the macromolecules and, thereby, alter the properties of these high rank coals. © 1986.