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University of Wyoming

UW Technologies Available for Licensing


Technology Disclosure: 06-028 In-Situ Coal Depolymerization and Solubilization Technologies for Enhancing the Production of Secondary Biogenic Coalbed Methane


Coalbed methane (CBM) is natural gas trapped within coal by the pressure exerted by groundwater.  Conservative estimates suggest that more than 700 trillion cubic feet of coal bed methane is available, buried under the United States just waiting to provide us with significant economic and environmental benefits.  CBM is a clean burning fossil fuel that many believe has the potential to become the most important domestic source of energy. 

The conversion of coal into methane is a biogenic two-step process.  In the first step, the solid coal matrix is converted into soluble constituents.  This is a complex step that may involve three mechanisms: depolymerization, solubilization, and desorption. The second step is performed by indigenous microorganisms that biologically convert the soluble, coal-derived constituents into methane.  Figure 1 illustrates these two steps:


Figure 1. Conversion of Coal into Biogenic Methane

Under normal conditions, coal can be solubilized sufficiently to facilitate biogenic methane production.  However, researchers at the University of Wyoming have developed various treatment methods that may significantly enhance the production of secondary biogenic coalbed methane.  Their in-situ depolymerization and solubilization technologies transform the solid coal matrix into soluble constituents and significantly increase the available dissolved organic carbon needed for the anaerobic microbial processes that convert the coal to CBM. (See Figure 2 below.)


Figure 2. Negative Ion Electrospray Ionization (NI-ESI) Mass Spectra of (a) Control and (b) Treated Water-soluble Fraction in Coal Samples. The peaks in Figure 2(b) show that UW's solubilization and depolymerization treatment technology significantly increases the available dissolved organic carbon needed for the anaerobic microbial processes that convert the coal to CBM, especially when compared against the non-treated control in Figure 2(a).

The depolymerization and solubilization of coal is likely the rate-limiting step for the production of secondary biogenic CBM. In-situ technologies such as those developed at the University of Wyoming can be used to transform a fraction of coal into coal-derived substrates that specifically enhance methane production. This approach will lead to a new era of sustainable energy production, continuously providing methane from coalbeds that would otherwise become exhausted.

If you would like to learn more about this novel method for enhancing coalbed methane production and how your company may apply it in commercial situations, please contact the director of the University of Wyoming Research Products Center, Davona Douglass. We would be pleased to share further details.