en.Wedoany.com Reported - A research team led by Academician Ge Shirong from China University of Mining and Technology, Beijing, has published findings in the first issue of the *Journal of China Coal Society* in 2026, proposing an innovative technological pathway for detonation power generation through the fluidized mining of deep underground coal. This approach utilizes detonation technology to convert coal directly into electrical energy in its in-situ underground state, eliminating the traditional steps of coal cutting, washing, and surface transportation. The research team designed two power generation methods: detonation-turbine and detonation-magnetohydrodynamic (MHD). The MHD power generation utilizes the conductive plasma produced by high-temperature detonation, which cuts through magnetic field lines at high speed to directly generate electric current. Combined with turbine power generation, this can improve energy utilization efficiency.
Detonation is not ordinary combustion, but a supersonic shock wave propagation process supported by chemical reactions. Traditional coal-fired power generation relies on the subsonic "deflagration" process, where the flame propagation speed is relatively slow, limiting thermal efficiency. Detonation combustion, however, uses a gas-solid mixture of pulverized coal and gas to trigger shock waves within milliseconds, producing shock waves with speeds exceeding 1000 meters per second. This shock wave can directly drive turbines or MHD power generation devices, converting the chemical energy of coal into electrical energy and enabling deep underground in-situ coal detonation power generation.
The research team proposed a coal mining process for deep underground coal fluidized mining and detonation power generation. The envisioned full-process flow for the T-S10 construction method is as follows: a multifunctional shield machine goes deep underground, simultaneously crushing coal during the tunneling process, feeding the pulverized coal and gas into a detonation combustion chamber, where ignition produces shock waves to drive a turbine or MHD generator for power generation. The generated electricity is directly transmitted to the surface via cables or enters an underground energy storage system. Detonation power generation technology is one of the important exploration directions in China's fluidized mining research, and safety controllability has been incorporated as a key aspect of technical verification.
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