Progress of coal science in the 20th century

Coal science is an applied discipline, using methods of science and engineering for research into genesis, characterisation, conversion and utilisation of coal and related solid fuels. This paper describes at first the development of coal science in the last century under the driving forces of politics, economics, and technology and in interaction with the progress achieved by other scientific and engineering disciplines. After that the growth and status of knowledge gained with respect to the different aspects of coal will be elucidated, choosing examples under the guideline “Structures and Basic Reactions”. These are “Chemical Structure and Coal Models”, “Reactions Based on Bond-breaking”, and “Surface Structure of Coke and Char and its Importance for Heterogeneous Reactions”. Besides the remarkable outcome of coal science, whereby many results have acquired great importance far beyond our discipline in science and technology, there exist also numerous unfulfilled aims of research work, as far as their transfer into practice is concerned. Globally, coal will still remain an indispensable source of chemical feedstock and energy for a long period of time. New and improved processes for its efficient and environmentally acceptable use will be a steady challenge for coming generations of coal scientists and for society to support the research required.