Coal, for use on steam hauled heritage railways - merged posts

[whole diary]

[eXPassenger]

Yes, I expect costs to rise as coal demand falls.
Not by that much though, imports of a few thousand tons a year should not cost much more per ton than importing millions of tons.
If just 100,000 households burn coal, and each one uses on average a ton a year, that is 100,000 tons a year.
Add to that the demand for iron and steel production, and other uses.

Bear in mind that the average size of a bulk carrier is 150,000 tonnes so you are talking of under 1 ship a year for domestic usage.

[Celestial]

Yes, I expect costs to rise as coal demand falls.
Not by that much though, imports of a few thousand tons a year should not cost much more per ton than importing millions of tons.
If just 100,000 households burn coal, and each one uses on average a ton a year, that is 100,000 tons a year.
Add to that the demand for iron and steel production, and other uses.

Bear in mind that the average size of a bulk carrier is 150,000 tonnes so you are talking of under 1 ship a year for domestic usage.

I'm not sure the typical coal burning household will use a ton each year, as it tends to be a "nice to have" to make the house feel welcoming, rather than a "must have used all the time" through winter.  We probably get through about a third of a ton each winter on that basis.  Though I suspect there are more than 100,000 householders still burning it on a discretional basis.

[Robin Summerhill]

Not all coal is suitable for steam locomotive fireboxes.  Different classes of locos need different coals, too.  Locos of The Great Western Railway were designed to work with the anthracite coal of the Welsh collieries.  I've had experience of firing the small shallow grates on GW^▸ (Great Western) locos with the proper stuff, and with substitute material from Yorkshire, Scotland and Russia.  lets just say the job works well with the designed-for fuel, and leave it there.

This was a problem in the 1950s, let alone now, and was one of the reasons why Swindon Works involved themselves in improved draughting arrangements etc. In short, when all you can get hold of is coal dust stuck together with cement you still need the engines to steam.

I admit that I am a bit of an armchair inexpert  on the finer points but, as the majority of railway coal being burnt these days is to keep relatiively light loads going at a maximum of 25mph. the coal quality is unlikely to have any serious problems attached to it. Until you get to dropping the fire after a day's work, that is...

Main line steam working would of course be a different matter

[eightf48544]

Looking back with hindsight we as a nation possibly made the wrong decision to go for large coal fired baseload power station based mostly around the Trent and Calder.

But one of the less well known successess of the Beeching plan was the MGR trains which served these stations with home dug coal direct from a local colliery to the power station. Where the train was unloaded on the move. For rail the ideal traffic. These ran up until fairly recently but unfortuantely latterly with imported coal from Hunterston? in Scotland to Yorkshire via the S&C^▸ (Settle and Carlisle ).

[Clan Line]

Bear in mind that the average size of a bulk carrier is 150,000 tonnes so you are talking of under 1 ship a year for domestic usage.

Which commercial port is going to keep/maintain the coal bulk handling infrastructure to unload 1 ship per year ?

[WSW Frome]

An item in the June "Railway Magazine" examines the quite major issues that could affect the supply of loco coal in the near future UK^▸ (United Kingdom) for use in the heritage fleet. In essence, UK sources could easily disappear and there are problems of importing the right kind of coal, suitably sized etc. This would need to be handled in some bulk for economies of scale and therefore would somehow need to be co-ordinated across the whole heritage sector - at a somewhat higher cost overall. 

[Bmblbzzz]

Bear in mind that the average size of a bulk carrier is 150,000 tonnes so you are talking of under 1 ship a year for domestic usage.

Which commercial port is going to keep/maintain the coal bulk handling infrastructure to unload 1 ship per year ?

Does it require different infrastructure to handling bulk ores?

[Witham Bobby]

This was a problem in the 1950s, let alone now, and was one of the reasons why Swindon Works involved themselves in improved draughting arrangements etc. In short, when all you can get hold of is coal dust stuck together with cement you still need the engines to steam.

I admit that I am a bit of an armchair inexpert  on the finer points but, as the majority of railway coal being burnt these days is to keep relatiively light loads going at a maximum of 25mph. the coal quality is unlikely to have any serious problems attached to it. Until you get to dropping the fire after a day's work, that is...

Main line steam working would of course be a different matter

If the stuff won't burn right, it matters not that the load is light and the speed is 25mph.  You have to consider not only the provision of enough energy to shift the train, but also potential damage to firebox and grate, not to mention noxious smoke.

[Trowres]

With the demand for heritage railway fuel being low, I wondered if charcoal would be a viable option. I came across this website with a suggestion of partially-pyrolysed wood that seems to retain a bit more of a coal-like quality than charcoal:

https://csrail.org/newsroom/2016/3/29/coal-fired-steam-can-it-last

(the relevant details are some way down the article).

At this (non-Drax) scale, possible easier to make carbon-neutral and sustainable using relatively local wood.

(modified to correct hyperlink)

[TonyK]

There will always be a need for some coal, whether imported or produced domestically, for iron and steel manufacture.
It should be simple to use a little for heritage railways.
There is also a modest but ongoing demand for coal for domestic heating and cooking. The domestic use of traditional housecoal has been/is about to be banned, but anthracite and coal derived patent fuels are still permitted. It should be simple to use a little of this coal for heritage railways.

Also coal burning for electric power production is unlikely to permanently end just yet. It is expected to resume in the winter, and for the next few winters. It should be simple to divert a little of this power station coal for heritage railway use.
Electricity from coal is declining rapidly but is most unlikely to become totally extinct just yet.

Farriers and blacksmiths will also need coal in modest volumes for the foreseeable future, supply to heritage railways could be combined with supplying this market.

My bolthole has an open fire, with the base heat supplied by electric storage heaters because of there being no gas supply to the village, and no desire to have a tank outside. It wouldn't be particularly warm without the fire lit in the evenings. I am not sure that one size fits all in coal. Because we aren't there all the time, I buy it by the 20 kg bag from the depot of the company that supplies everywhere else that sells coal and bagged logs in Devon. The reception there has a display of samples of 8 or so different types of coal they sell for domestic use, arranged in order of price, which also seems to correspond with how much heat they give out. I understand that there is to be a standard government approved solid fuel to replace all this, which I imagine will cost more than all the existing options. Business will be brisk in the last few weeks, as I am sure I will not be the only one to stockpile. I am sure I will be offered an alternative in the pub, I'm just not sure whether to call it black market or underground.

Drax power station in Yorkshire is due to cease burning coal soon, completing its transformation into a new green facility burning "biomass", and attracting generous subsidies. Except that a climate change think tank called Ember has finally read what I have written on the subject previously here and elsewhere, and realised that burning wood pellets that have been dried then dragged across the Atlantic using dirty marine diesel isn't particularly green. The basic premise of the young trees, planted to replace those cut down so that we can enjoy Eastenders with a clear conscience, producing oxygen from carbon dioxide while growing is a good one scientifically. The problem is that it will take centuries to square the circle, if at all, and we don't have that long. According to another group quoted by the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) in this report, Drax is the UK^▸ (United Kingdom)'s biggest emitter of CO₂, and isn't helping much in the fight against climate change. I'm also waiting for them to get back to me to explain why £92.50 per mWh is an illegal subsidy if it is Hinkley C, but £144 per mWh isn't, if it's burning wood. It may be that the contracts are unstoppable, but it wouldn't surprise me to see Drax and other wood pellet burners falling from grace soon. Quite what that will do for coal generation remains to be seen, although I will be glad to see it gone forever.

Somehow, I can see a supply of coal finding its way into the UK still, in sufficient quantity that steam railways will still be able to get it, for quite a few years to come.

[broadgage]

Regarding fuel supply for the domestic fireplace discussed above.
You will no longer be allowed to purchase traditional housecoal for your fireplace.
All common types of coal derived patent fuels will still be allowed. The better quality patent fuels are very suitable for domestic open fires.
No question of just one standard type being available.
Your supplier will be able to recommend the most suitable fuel for an open fire.
Anthracite is also permitted, but is not entirely suitable for an open fire, more applicable to closed appliances with an induced draught.

Note that the restrictions on housecoal are NOT primarily for climate change reasons, but are to reduce smoke and particulate emissions. Patent fuels emit almost the same amount of carbon dioxide as housecoal, but do greatly reduce smoke and particulates.

If you use your open fire regularly, it might be worth having a small modern stove installed instead. These make better use of fuel, often consuming less than half the fuel of an open fire for the same heat.
This not only saves money but also reduces the labour in fuel handling and ash disposal.
Be sure to get a multi fuel stove that can burn logs or anthracite.
Logs are greener if obtained locally.
Anthracite is longer burning and less bulky to store, and keeps better.
I use logs normally but keep half a ton or so of anthracite for emergencies.

[Celestial]

... for emergencies.

Who would have guessed.

[broadgage]

... for emergencies.

Who would have guessed.

There might be a pandemic or some other out of course event that disrupts fuel supplies.
For similar reasons I keep a few thousand candles and a couple of hundred batteries.
I don't trust any fuel supply if I cant see it, on the premises.
The present pandemic has not had any discernable effect on fuel supplies, but what about NEXT winter, or the NEXT pandemic.

[Celestial]

There might be a pandemic or some other out of course event that disrupts fuel supplies.
For similar reasons I keep a few thousand candles

I am speechless...

[MVR S&T]

I only keep 4 Candles... Good for digging the veg patch over.