INTERACTION OF GASEOUS REAGENTS WITH COAL IN A GLOW DISCHARGE.

The glow discharge is an effective means of intensifying chemical processes. In the positive column of a glow discharge the gas is present in the state of a low-temperature plasma. The temperature of the electrons in the plasma of the positive column reaches tens of thousands of degrees at a molecular temperature of the gas measured in tens or hundreds of degrees. Under these conditions in the gas phase a considerable amount of active components arises - atoms, radicals, excited particles, etc. - which stimulate the occurrence of chemical reactions. The prospects of the use of electric discharges in gases generating a low-temperature plasma are determined by the possibility of obtaining concentrations corresponding to the molecular temperature of the reaction. Experimental data are presented which show that an increase in the amount of CH//2 and CH//3 groupings in coal when it is treated in a glow discharge in methane and hydrogen has been observed. The possibility has been shown of using a nonisothermal plasma for the low-temperature ashing of coal.