02 Apr 2024

Botswana International University Science and Technology (BIUST) researchers are working on a project that could redefine the coal industry landscape and is funded by Botswana Digital and Innovation Hub to the tune of P500 000. 

Beneficiation of Botswana coal for the metallurgical industry, is the name of the project which it is hoped, would diversify the use of coal to higher value use, than predominantly thermal coal. 

Through the project, which started in 2021, the university is experimenting avenues of converting locally sourced coal, into metallurgical value. Presently, the university is exploring transforming Botswana coal to a special type called coking coal, through a systematic blending of coal sourced locally with one mined in Zimbabwe. 

Teaching instructor at BIUST in the Department of Chemicals, Materials and Metallurgical Engineering, Mr Thapelo Shomana, said the first step of the project was special analysis of Botswana coal whose findings were that Botswana coal was not coking. 

“The findings were that Botswana failed to meet coking coal key parameters, being coal reactivity index, coal strength after reaction and coal petrography, which are the main defining parameters for this particular application (metallurgical use),” Mr Shomana said. 

A similar analysis exercise of coal was done on coal from Zimbabwe according to Mr Shomana and it was found that coal from Hwange (a place in Zimbabwe) had superior quality and was coking. 

Explaining what is meant by coking coal, Mr Shomana said, it was the type which when heated in the absence of air underwent a transformation to form coke, used in the steel industry or blast furnaces. 

Based on either results or various parameters, from both coals, he said modeling exercise was done, which involved mixing local coal with the coal from Zimbabwe using modeling equipment. 

The results are promising and we are yet to conduct model verification, Mr Shomana said and further stated that during model verification, they would physically blend the target coal as per calculated rations. 

Briquetting plant, a machine to be used on model verification is available and should the exercise come to fruition, Mr Shomana said the prospect of starting steel production in Botswana would become more favorable. 

He said given that Botswana was endowed with abundant coal, coupled with iron ore reserves in Shoshong area, steel industries would be viable locally and that would help address skyrocketing demand for steel, a commodity whose production is listed among the consumers of coke, which is a product of coking coal. 

Botswana would also stand a chance to be a net importer of coke, a lucrative option of benefiting from coal. 

To put that into perspective, Mr Shomana said that by end of last year (fourth quarter), thermal coal was P1 993.65 per tonne, equivalent and coking coal was P4 579.16 per tonne. Ends