Determination of Gas Contents and Spontaneous Combustion Liabilities of Zonguldak Coals

Gas content and spontaneous combustion susceptibility of coals are among the most important issues to be considered in underground coal mining operations in terms of coal characteristics. Coals may have different gas contents capacities and spontaneous combustion tendencies due to differences in their composition, formation stages and environmental impacts. From this point of view, the gas contents of coals with different spontaneous combustion tendencies should also be examined and these parameters should be evaluated together in terms of preventing possible accidents. As emphasized in the literature studies, the tendency of coal to spontaneous combustion starts with oxygen adsorption to the coal and then combustion starts with the heat released. Within the scope of this study, the gas contents of coal samples taken from the Karadon Region of Zonguldak Hardcoal Basin were determined. In the last stage, the spontaneous combustion susceptibility test was carried out on these samples with the crossing point temperature determination method and their spontaneous combustion susceptibilities (ignition point temperatures and FCC spontaneous combustion index values) were determined. In the light of these findings, spontaneous combustion tendencies and gas contents for Karadon coals were correlated with each other.