Abstract
The first coal chemical recovery ovens were installed in the United States in 1893. By 1915, by-product ovens accounted for 97% of the metallurgical coke produced in the United States. These by-product ovens produced coal tar as one of the major by-products. An industry developed around distillation of coal tar to produce various products. One of the major products produced is coal tar pitch. Since that time, coal tar pitch has become the binder of choice for the aluminum, commercial carbon, and graphite industries.
A science has developed around defining the quality of a binder pitch based on its physical properties. Successful and unsuccessful efforts in this endeavor will be discussed. In addition some of the major changes in coal tar pitch properties as well as some of the successful and unsuccessful attempts to modify pitch properties will be discussed. Lastly, coal tar pitch supply and quality issues for the future will be addressed.
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Wombles, Robert H., Baron, John Thomas, "Laboratory Anode Comparison of Chinese Modified Pitch and Vacuum Distilled Pitch", TMS Light Metals 2006.
Wombles, Robert H., Sadler, Barry, "The Effect of Binder Pitch Quinoline Insolubles Content on Aluminum Anode Physical Properties", 8th Australasian Aluminium Smelting Technology Conference, 2004.
Wombles Robert H., Kiser, Melvin D., Developing Coal Tar/Petroleum Pitches", TMS Light Metals 2000.
Sorlie, Morten, “Pitch Quality-As Seen from a Users Side”, 9th Australasian Aluminium Smelter Conference, 2005.
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© 2016 The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society
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Baron, J.T., McKinney, S.A., Wombles, R.H. (2016). Coal Tar Pitch-Past, Present, and Future. In: Tomsett, A., Johnson, J. (eds) Essential Readings in Light Metals. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48200-2_25
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48200-2_25
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-48577-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-48200-2
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