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<br />o <br />~ <br />~ <br />r..:J <br /> <br />condensed out of the product fuel process lines. This water is derived <br />from the hydrogenation of oxygen in the coal, from moisture in the coal, <br />and from unreacted steam put through the coal conversion reactor. The <br />condensate flow rates are relatively large, show a wide variation, and <br />may contain large quantities of ammonia, carbon dioxide, phenols, and <br />other organics. <br /> <br />In most conversion processes, the condensate wastewater is so contam- <br />inated that its release to the environment in any form is unacceptable. <br />Therefore, it is likely that treated condensate will be used as make-up <br />to a cooling tower since a circulating cooling system can acc~pt consid- <br />erably more organic material and ammonia than would be permissible for <br />discharge to a river. However, the cooling tower blowdown then becomes <br />the principal discharge point for the whole plant and this blowdown will <br />contain, in addition to concentrated salts, residues of organic matter <br />originating in the coal reactor. <br /> <br />There are a number of ways in which the blowdown streams from boiler <br />feedwater treatment and and cooling towers could be disposed of. Im- <br />poundment in lined evaporation ponds is perhaps the most probably method. <br />Another method is to wet down the coal ash with the concentrated blow- <br />downs. In some instances, the cooling tower blowdown might have to be <br />treated to reduce organic contamination before it could be used to wet <br />down the coal ash. <br /> <br />In terms of costs, it is estimated that wastewater control for a coal <br />gasification plant would run, on an annualized basis, anywhere from about <br />3 to 20 cents per million Btu of product, depending upon the particular <br />treatment and disposal options employed and the quality of the waste <br />streams handled. By way of comparison, the total cost of producing a <br />high-Btu pipeline quality gas is estimated to by $3-4 per million Btu. <br /> <br />Surface Retorting of Oil Shale. Two different water management schemes <br />were analyzed for: an oil shale convension complex in which surface <retort- <br />ing occurs. In one scheme, the processed shale is moisturized, transported <br />to the disposal sire, and compacted. The spent shale is moisturized with <br />all of the wastewaters generated in the plant, and then some. Thus, the <br />only treatment that would be required would be to remove odorous, volatile <br />substances, which is standard practice. The cost of this treatment is est- <br />imated to range anywhere from about 1 to3 cents per million Btu of product. <br /> <br />In the second scheme, a valley would be lined with a thin, impermeable <br />layer of compacted spent shale that is wetted down. The remainder of the <br />spent shale would be deposited into the lined basin and compacted but not <br />wetted down except for controlling dust. Since this second scheme would <br />require very little water for compaction purposes, retorting and upgrading <br />wastewater would have to be treated for recycle and reuse within the plant. <br />In this regard, it was assumed that the wastewater would be treated for use <br />in a cooling tower in a manner similar to that for a coal gasification plant. <br /> <br />cxxiv <br />