Underground coal
gasification (UCG) has been shown to be a promising
method for deep coal resources. A series of complicated chemical reactions
can induce a considerable change in the pore structure of coal and
thus promote the UCG process in turn. Currently, most studies on the
effect of elevated temperature on the pore structure of coal were
not involved in an air atmosphere, bringing a series of difficulties
to understanding the pore structure evolution of gasified coal in
the UCG process. The objective of this work was to investigate the
pore structure evolution of coal heated in nitrogen and air atmospheres
at elevated temperatures. Thermogravimetry tests were first conducted
to gasify coal samples, and then, the method scanning electron microscopy
was used to observe the microscopic morphology of the pore structure.
Besides, the effect of final temperature, atmosphere, pressure, and
residence time on the thermal dynamics of coal at elevated temperatures
was comprehensively discussed. Results indicated that the temperature
range of a heating process of coal can be classified into three stages,
25–320 °C, 320–750 °C, and 750–1000
°C. For the three temperature ranges, drying, primary pyrolysis,
and secondary pyrolysis can dominate, respectively, under a nitrogen
atmosphere, while the combustion and gasification process will prevail
at a high temperature under an air atmosphere. Because of mass loss,
the coal was becoming porous during the heating process. Compared
with the intact structure of coal when the temperature is lower than
300 °C, the pore space can interconnect under moderate-temperature
conditions (500 °C) like a honeycomb, and then, only an ash framework
remained under a higher-temperature condition (700 °C) under
an air atmosphere. In comparison, the coal heated in a nitrogen atmosphere
can gradually turn into a porous char. This investigation can provide
some new insights into the pore structure evolution of gasified coal
and contribute to the mechanisms of a UCG process.