| Abstract: | International preoccupation with the oil crisis has tended to concern itself mainly with the economic aspects and this has obscured the fact that, regardless of price, the world's oil reserves are rapidly becoming exhausted. Alter-native sources of energy are, therefore, not merely desirable but essential and much attention is now being directed to the more effective use of coal, reserves of which are still very substantial. This article reviews—in both practical and economic terms—current technology for the refining of coal and the prospects it offers for the future. |
