Welcome to Colleen’s Corner. This is a column meant for fun and some information About myself: I am a Freelance Photographer you often see me on the side of the road or in various places taking photos of different things animals, birds, places, people etc. l have lived in Lumby just over 8 years you have seen my photos in the newspaper (Lumby Valley Times) and once in awhile in the Vernon Morning Star, and the Lumby Art Gallery. Photography is my passion. Disclaimer: The information on some of my photos that I write about a lot of times come from the Internet or books I research them, hopefully the facts are as close to the truth as I can come.
On our travels we had come across some different things that I had either seen before, heard of or both. In Idaho we found these long stone things that from far away looked like old train tunnels, but they were so close together that there was no way possible for them to be tunnels. We drove in closer to find that they were called Coke Ovens. Coke ovens are devices that can produce coke that comes from coal. The temperatures are quite high 1832 F-3632 F. The ovens without oxygen which makes them airless to make the coke byproduct. The product contains sulphur and ash. Once done the coke can be used like a fuel or a reducing agent for smelting iron ore from a blast furnace. The use of coke is part of three materials which are fundamental in producing iron, then used to make steel. This is usually in a combination of limestone and ore. There are gases in the coke ovens which can also be used like fuel.
When making the coke there will be treated coal placed in the ovens. With the high temperatures inside the ovens coal gas, coal water and the tar will separate from the coal. The gas and water will then stay together with the ash and carbon, the residue that is leftover is hard and called coke.
It is a certain type of coal that is used, some of the factors include the ash, sulphur, tar, plasticity, and volatility. The volatility of the type of coal is important as it allows for a higher quality and a much greater quantity of the coke. The more volatile the coal, the more byproducts, however too much of volatility could work out as a negative making the byproducts too porous for coke of quality.
But of course there is a downside to converting the coal into coke in the coke ovens. There have been proven studies that the old coke ovens have been known to cause tumours and cancers of the lungs and intestines, or kidneys in humans.
Now heat recovery ovens ( high intensity microwave ovens) are used in place of coke ovens which by far is better and runs on a battery, without the high risk of causing cancers.
