Potential of CBM as an Energy Vector in Active Mines and Abandoned Mines in Russia and Europe

Isabel Amez (), David León, Alexander Ivannikov, Konstantin Kolikov and Blanca Castells
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Isabel Amez: Department of Energy and Fuels, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Technical University of Madrid), 28040 Madrid, Spain
David León: Department of Energy and Fuels, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Technical University of Madrid), 28040 Madrid, Spain
Alexander Ivannikov: Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Systems, National University of Science and Technology MISIS, Leninsky Av. 4, 119049 Moscow, Russia
Konstantin Kolikov: Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Systems, National University of Science and Technology MISIS, Leninsky Av. 4, 119049 Moscow, Russia
Blanca Castells: Department of Energy and Fuels, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Technical University of Madrid), 28040 Madrid, Spain

Energies, 2023, vol. 16, issue 3, 1-17

Abstract: The energy sector is in the spotlight today for its contribution to global warming and its dependence on global geopolitics. Even though many countries have reduced their use of coal, the COVID-19 crisis, the drop in temperatures in Central Asia, and the war between Russia and Ukraine have shown that coal continues to play an important role in this sector today. As long as we continue to depend energetically on coal, it is necessary to create the basis for the successful extraction and industrial use of coal mine methane (CMM), for example, as an unconventional energy resource. Early degassing technology is a technique that allows for the extraction of the methane contained within the coal seams. The application of this technology would reduce emissions, improve mine safety, and even increase their profitability. However, this technology has been understudied and is still not implemented on a large scale today. Moreover, mines with this technology generally burn the extracted methane in flares, losing a potential unconventional fuel. This study, therefore, presents different scenarios of the use of coalbed methane (CBM), with the aim of generating an impact on pollutant emissions from coal mines. To this end, a model has been designed to evaluate the economic efficiency of degasification. In addition, an emissions analysis was carried out. The results showed that the use of this technology has a negative impact on the economy of mines, which can be completely reversed with the use of CBM as fuel. Furthermore, it is observed that degasification, in addition to reducing the number of accidents in coal mining, reduces emissions by 30–40%.

Keywords: degasification; renewable energy; methane emissions; non-conventional fuels; methane; CBM (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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