Types of Gas
For energy purposes different types of gas have been used almost 200 years of the history of gas industry. A more important position has been achieved only by gas types that have been produced by gasification or degassing of coal, natural gas and fluid gases on the base of propane and butane:
Heating gases made by degassing or gasification of coal belong to gases with middle heating and they are known as a coke gas or lighting gas. Their most important components are methane, hydrogen and carbon monoxide. The heating value is between 17–20 MJ/m3.
Gases with high contents of methane are heating gases with very good heating value. The decisive component is methane, they might also contain higher hydrocarbons and inert gases. Their heating value depends on the contents of methane. It is moving between 20 and 40 MJ/m3.
Gases on the base of propane and butane belong to the gases with high heating value. They are used as a pure gases or as a mixture known under the mark bottled gas. In contrast to the above mentioned gases they are delivered to customers in liquid form. The heating value depends on the proportion of propane and butane in the mixture. It achieves from 101.7 (pure propane) to 133.9 MJ/m3 (pure butane).