FT/IR investigation of CO2 interaction with coal under high pressure

Subsurface coal seams contain significant amounts of gas, that is largely adsorbed in the internal surface of the coal pores. From the 1970s onwards there has been a growing interest to produce this gas, coalbed methane, as a fuel. Due to a concerted effort by the US government and private organisations to demonstrate commercial production, the coalbed methane industry in the USA grew from a little-known, high-cost operation to a competitive main-stream natural gas resource (Ayers, 2002). At the end of the 1980’s, this industry searched for methods to enhance production. The successes of Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) gave the coalbed methane industry, especially Amoco (now BP), the idea that gas injection could also be successfully applied in coalbeds to enhance coalbed methane production.