The Price of coal is now becoming higher than that of petroleum and the energy source is now passing from coal to petroleum.In order to break this trend, a power plant which has maximum output of 70, 000kW and yearly power productivity of 367, 920MWh was constructed in Nakoso City in Fukushima Pref. on November, 1957,
The low grade coal fine of 3, 500kcal/kg is used in this plant and about 360, 000t per year is consumed.
The boiler used is a high pressure type of 66kg/cm²g and its heat efficieucy is 92.1% The total autput of turbine is 70, 000kW and the total copacity of power generator is 82, 400kVA, The total heat efficiency of this plant is 28-29% through a year,
The coal used in this plant has over 40% of ash content, but the plant has been successfully operated by the special methods of overcoming ash troubles, The yearly output of fly-ash is about 40, 000t.

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A great deal of coal field gas is reserved in the fault or fissure.In thispaper occurrence of coal field gas accumulation, roch faces, geologic structure, gas volume, gas composition, grouhd water, and migration of gas were stated.The structure of the coal field is complicated by numerous faults and decrease of the gas volume are very complicated and variable according to geologic conditions.at present daily product of natural gas in the boring wells is about 50, 000m³ natural gas in this district shows the following chemical characters.
CH₄=92%-95% N₂=3%-7% CO₂>0.3% C₂H₆>0.11%
Chemical characteristics of ground water is as follows.
pH=6.6-8.6
Cl′=1, 524-12, 445mg/l

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-The author visited a lot of coal mines and their related works in U.S.A., Canada, England, France and Germany for three months last year.It was aimed at to clarify both the reason why the productivities of coal mines in Japan and Western Europe are much lower than those in U.S.A. and efforts Western Europe had made in order to raise the productivity.
This is the report of this visit and reports mainly on the recent circumstances of coal mining machineries, hydraulic support, stowing, etc.in cauntries visited.

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The problem how to convert the gas source in ammonia synthesis industry, is much liable to be discussed simply as a matter of quantity both from the economical and techical points of view, presumably because of the exceedingly high cost rate of gas in ammonia. But, as it holds sway not only over the orientation of technical development of this industry, but also over the socio-economic structure of the enterprise itself, we cannot lay too much emphasis on the importance of this problem.
Beyond all doubt the conversion of the gas source from the solid fuel to fluid materials is most profitable. In postwar Japan, radical alternation was made in the processes of the conversion. Among the chief processes employed and materials used for this purpose were, in sequence of time: electrolysis method, water gas, semi-water gas, and the gasification of pulverated coal, heavy oil and crude oil. The utilization of natural gas also demands our increasing interest. On the way of this conversion, the over-production of ammonia in Japan and the aggravating international price war offered an opportunity for us to the change the problem of gas sources from the matter of quantity to that of quality, in other words, to develop the problem how to rationalize the technical matters relating to the ammonia synthesis into the problem how to improve the structure of the enterprise at large in consideration of the social and economical conditions.
Though it occupied the premier position for years in the sphere of chemical industries in Japan, the ammonia synthesis industry has failed to rely on itself and is falling into only a subordinate department of an integral and vast system of chemical industry.At the same time, the concentration of capital and production is made quite rapidly.This trend is illustrated in this report with the depiction of concrete measures taken up by the manufac-turers of ammonium sulphate.The special profitability of utilization of excess gas from the coke ovens of iron foundries and waste gas from oil refineries for ammonia synthesis is also shown here.
Another subject of this report is the relations between coal and petroleum industries.The reportor has studied the reason why Nippon Suiso (Japan Hydrogen) Industry Co.failed in the commercialization of the gasification of pulverized coal in spite of its quite favorable condition of locality, and concluded that what caused this failure were the facts: (1) that the new technique was introduced without any consideration of economical and factors of the society, (2) that the capital of the company was too small for the scale of the project, and (3) that the coal capitalists failed to act in union.At present, coal is completely outrivaled by oil as the material of gas, and the processes of gasification of oil are introduced entirely from abroad.But this present status is rather problematical, for the utilization of coal in this industry can be more profitable depending on the condition of locality of workshops, only provided that the domestic technique can be employed.To meet the situation, the reorganization of coal industries, the reconstruction of their structure is essential, just as the qualitative improvement in the ammonia industry is essential for the profitable solution of the problem of gas source conversion.

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