{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,9]],"date-time":"2026-09-09T15:24:34Z","timestamp":1788967474153,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":49,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"18","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,9]],"date-time":"2026-09-09T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1788912000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"China Baowu Low Carbon Metallurgy Innovation Foundation","award":["BWLCF202301"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["BWLCF202301"]}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001809","name":"National Natural Science Foundation of China","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["52504324"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["52504324"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001809","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"award":["52504324"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["52504324"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/01h0zpd94","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"name":"Postdoctoral Fellowship Program of CPSF","award":["GZC20252396"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["GZC20252396"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Materials"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Coke breeze, a solid waste generated during coke production, transportation and utilization, possesses physicochemical properties akin to metallurgical coke except for its finer particle size. Recycling this material offers an effective route to conserve and reuse coal resources, yielding notable environmental and economic benefits. In this study, a composite binder composed of phenolic resin (PR) and coal tar pitch (CTP) was developed for producing high-strength metallurgical coke substitutes from coke breeze. This strategy complementarily combines the excellent binding and curing properties of PR with the superior high-temperature carbonization performance of CTP. Thermal and structural analyses elucidated distinct pyrolysis characteristics and functional group distributions between the two binders, providing a theoretical foundation for their complementary interaction. Systematic investigations into briquette strength, performance, and microstructure established that the optimal composite binder dosage is 15 wt.% of coke breeze, with a CTP-to-PR mass ratio of 7:3. This complementary system substantially enhanced the compressive strength of the formed coke, reaching 37.73 MPa after carbonization at 1000 \u00b0C, and improved its thermal stability, as reflected by a Coke Strength after Reaction (CSR) of 41.21%. Compared to the individual binders, the composite binder exhibited superior consolidation efficiency and structural integrity, presenting a promising approach for solid waste valorization and sustainable coke production.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ma19183843","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,9]],"date-time":"2026-09-09T15:01:56Z","timestamp":1788966116000},"page":"3843","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Preparing High-Strength Formed Coke from Coke Breeze Using a Composite Binder: Complementary Integration of Phenolic Resin Binding and Coal Tar Pitch Carbonization"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"19","author":[{"given":"Lin","family":"Wang","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Minerals Processing and Bioengineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yongbin","family":"Yang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Minerals Processing and Bioengineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yinrui","family":"Dong","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Minerals Processing and Bioengineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0192-5796","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Yan","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Minerals Processing and Bioengineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Shichao","family":"He","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Minerals Processing and Bioengineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Qian","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Minerals Processing and Bioengineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,9]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"127240","DOI":"10.1016\/j.biortech.2022.127240","article-title":"Gasification of pine sawdust via synergetic conversion using iron ore as a catalyst","volume":"355","author":"Wang","year":"2022","journal-title":"Bioresour. Technol."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"123269","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuel.2022.123269","article-title":"A comprehensive review on efficient utilization methods of High-alkali coals combustion in boilers","volume":"316","author":"Tang","year":"2022","journal-title":"Fuel"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Ma, D., Li, Q., Hall, M.R., and Wu, Y. (2017). Experimental Investigation of Stress Rate and Grain Size on Gas Seepage Characteristics of Granular Coal. Energies, 10.","DOI":"10.3390\/en10040527"},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"422","DOI":"10.1016\/j.wasman.2020.06.025","article-title":"Chemical and physical characterization of spent coffee ground biochar treated by a wet oxidation method for the production of a coke substitute","volume":"113","author":"Maree","year":"2020","journal-title":"Waste Manag."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"132913","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jclepro.2022.132913","article-title":"The real cost of deep peak shaving for renewable energy accommodation in coal-fired power plants: Calculation framework and case study in China","volume":"367","author":"Meng","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Clean. Prod."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"12","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuproc.2016.02.026","article-title":"Xylene activation of coal tar pitch binding characteristics for production of metallurgical quality briquettes from coke breeze","volume":"148","author":"Zhong","year":"2016","journal-title":"Fuel Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"157216","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jallcom.2020.157216","article-title":"Thermodynamic analysis of AlxOy(g) and phase and micro-structure evolution of the resin bonded Al-Al2O3-ZrO2 refractories under air embedded in coke breeze","volume":"855","author":"Yan","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Alloys Compd."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"131","DOI":"10.1016\/j.powtec.2018.09.010","article-title":"Combustion behavior of granulated coke breeze in iron ore sintering","volume":"340","author":"Xiong","year":"2018","journal-title":"Powder Technol."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"130238","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuel.2023.130238","article-title":"Enhancement of coal tar pitch carbonization with biochar: A metallurgical formed biocoke product produced by waste coke breeze and bamboo powder","volume":"358","author":"Wang","year":"2024","journal-title":"Fuel"},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"129365","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuel.2023.129365","article-title":"Synergistic recycling of biochar from sawdust pyrolysis and waste coke breeze to produce metallurgical quality biocoke with syngas as a by-product","volume":"354","author":"Wang","year":"2023","journal-title":"Fuel"},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"135","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jwpe.2019.01.013","article-title":"Removal of cyanide from steel plant effluent using coke breeze, a waste product of steel industry","volume":"28","author":"Mondal","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Water Process Eng."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"113800","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jenvman.2021.113800","article-title":"Application of coke breeze for removal of colour from coke plant wastewater","volume":"302","author":"Ghosh","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Environ. Manag."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"376","DOI":"10.1080\/19392699.2017.1363738","article-title":"Effect of binder composition on the preparation of formed coke with low-rank coal","volume":"40","author":"Song","year":"2020","journal-title":"Int. J. Coal Prep. Util."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"120","DOI":"10.1016\/j.powtec.2021.02.071","article-title":"Model study of carbonisation of low rank coal briquettes: Effect of briquettes shape","volume":"385","author":"Zhuo","year":"2021","journal-title":"Powder Technol."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1918","DOI":"10.2355\/isijinternational.ISIJINT-2020-079","article-title":"New Method for Preparation of Coke Analogues and Comparability for Industrial Metallurgical Coke","volume":"60","author":"Sun","year":"2020","journal-title":"ISIJ Int."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"137571","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cej.2022.137571","article-title":"Healable ablative composites from synergistically crosslinked phenolic resin","volume":"447","author":"Xing","year":"2022","journal-title":"Chem. Eng. J."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"112056","DOI":"10.1016\/j.rser.2021.112056","article-title":"Lignocellulosic biomass carbonization for biochar production and characterization of biochar reactivity","volume":"157","author":"Qin","year":"2022","journal-title":"Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"109000","DOI":"10.1016\/j.diamond.2022.109000","article-title":"Preparation of lignin based phenolic resin microspheres with controllable particle size and its application in capacitors","volume":"125","author":"Ren","year":"2022","journal-title":"Diam. Relat. Mater."},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2305","DOI":"10.1016\/j.wasman.2010.05.007","article-title":"Reutilization of thermostable polyester wastes by means of agglomeration with phenolic resins","volume":"30","author":"Correa","year":"2010","journal-title":"Waste Manag."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"28","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuproc.2007.06.005","article-title":"Phenolic resin binder for the production of metallurgical quality briquettes from coke breeze: Part I","volume":"89","author":"Benk","year":"2008","journal-title":"Fuel Process Technol."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"38","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuproc.2007.10.007","article-title":"Phenolic resin binder for the production of metallurgical quality briquettes from coke breeze: Part II the effect of the type of the basic catalyst used in the resol production on the tensile strength of the formed coke briquettes","volume":"89","author":"Benk","year":"2008","journal-title":"Fuel Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1152","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuproc.2010.03.030","article-title":"Utilisation of the binders prepared from coal tar pitch and phenolic resins for the production metallurgical quality briquettes from coke breeze and the study of their high temperature carbonization behaviour","volume":"91","author":"Benk","year":"2010","journal-title":"Fuel Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"631","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuproc.2010.11.022","article-title":"Investigation of resole, novalac and coal tar pitch blended binder for the production of metallurgical quality formed coke briquettes from coke breeze and anthracite","volume":"92","author":"Benk","year":"2011","journal-title":"Fuel Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1078","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuproc.2011.01.002","article-title":"Molasses and air blown coal tar pitch binders for the production of metallurgical quality formed coke from anthracite fines or coke breeze","volume":"92","author":"Benk","year":"2011","journal-title":"Fuel Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"971","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuproc.2009.02.008","article-title":"Phenolic resin binder for the production of metallurgical quality briquettes from coke breeze: Part III the effect of the type of acidic hardeners on the quality of the formed coke and the possibility to avoid the curing stage to produce metallurgical briquettes with enough strength","volume":"90","author":"Benk","year":"2009","journal-title":"Fuel Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"122485","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuel.2021.122485","article-title":"High-performance activated carbon cathodes from green cokes for Zn-ion hybrid supercapacitors","volume":"310","author":"Zhang","year":"2022","journal-title":"Fuel"},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"87","DOI":"10.1016\/j.renene.2021.01.149","article-title":"Effects of surface functional groups of coal-tar-pitch-derived nanoporous carbon anodes on microbial fuel cell performance","volume":"171","author":"Liu","year":"2021","journal-title":"Renew. Energy"},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"130163","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cej.2021.130163","article-title":"Novel zeolite\/carbon monolith adsorbents for efficient CH4\/N2 separation","volume":"426","author":"Liu","year":"2021","journal-title":"Chem. Eng. J."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"122418","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuel.2021.122418","article-title":"Fabrication of N\/O self-doped hierarchical porous carbons derived from modified coal tar pitch for high-performance supercapacitors","volume":"310","author":"Yin","year":"2022","journal-title":"Fuel"},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"105272","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jaap.2021.105272","article-title":"Recent advancement in coal tar pitch-based carbon fiber precursor development and fiber manufacturing process","volume":"158","author":"Banerjee","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Anal. Appl. Pyrolysis"},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"115809","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jelechem.2021.115809","article-title":"Pyrolysis of coal pitch-infused melamine foam to construct N-doped carbon anodes for high-performance sodium-ion battery","volume":"902","author":"Xue","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Electroanal. Chem."},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1884","DOI":"10.1016\/j.wasman.2006.10.002","article-title":"Waste polyvinylchloride derived pitch as a precursor to develop carbon fibers and activated carbon fibers","volume":"27","author":"Qiao","year":"2007","journal-title":"Waste Manag."},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"124685","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuel.2022.124685","article-title":"Effective preparation of mesophase by segmented hydrogenation\/thermal polycondensation of coal liquefied pitch","volume":"324","author":"Qi","year":"2022","journal-title":"Fuel"},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"197","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuel.2015.12.032","article-title":"The influence of addition of coal tar pitch (CTP) and expired pharmaceuticals (EP) on properties and composition of pyrolysis products for lower and higher rank coals","volume":"170","author":"Zubkova","year":"2016","journal-title":"Fuel"},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"101310","DOI":"10.1016\/j.eti.2020.101310","article-title":"Exploring untapped effect of process conditions on biochar characteristics and applications","volume":"21","author":"Ahmad","year":"2021","journal-title":"Environ. Technol. Innov."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"12","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuproc.2016.11.005","article-title":"Coal tar pitch and molasses blended binder for production of formed coal briquettes from high volatile coal","volume":"157","author":"Zhong","year":"2017","journal-title":"Fuel Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"128275","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuel.2023.128275","article-title":"Preparation of formed coke product as a coke substitute using a solid waste fuel: Trimethylbenzene improvement on coal tar pitch","volume":"346","author":"Wang","year":"2023","journal-title":"Fuel"},{"key":"ref_38","unstructured":"Metallic Materials\u2014Compression Test Method at Room Temperature (Standard No. GB\/T 7314-2017)."},{"key":"ref_39","unstructured":"Determination of Coke Reactivity Index (CRI) and Coke Strength after Reaction (CSR) (Standard No. GB\/T 4000-2017)."},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3031","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.energyfuels.7b03596","article-title":"Application of Triazine-Based Gemini Surfactants as Viscosity Reducing Agents of Tar Sand Derived Bituminous Crude","volume":"32","author":"Sahai","year":"2018","journal-title":"Energy Fuels"},{"key":"ref_41","first-page":"343","article-title":"Study on the Pyrolysis Characteristic and the Microstructure of the Pyrolysis Products of \u03b2 Resins from Different Coal Tar Pitch","volume":"40","author":"Zhu","year":"2018","journal-title":"J. Chem. Soc. Pak."},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"479","DOI":"10.1016\/j.carbon.2014.12.030","article-title":"Raman microspectroscopy characterization of carbon blacks: Spectral analysis and structural information","volume":"84","author":"Pawlyta","year":"2015","journal-title":"Carbon"},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"105818","DOI":"10.1016\/j.precamres.2020.105818","article-title":"Raman spectroscopy and structural heterogeneity of carbonaceous material in Proterozoic organic-walled microfossils in the North China Craton","volume":"346","author":"Pang","year":"2020","journal-title":"Precambrian Res."},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1016\/j.coal.2014.05.005","article-title":"Assessing the quality of metallurgical coke by Raman spectroscopy","volume":"130","author":"Rantitsch","year":"2014","journal-title":"Int. J. Coal Geol."},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4316","DOI":"10.1007\/s10853-008-2633-y","article-title":"Effect of microstructure on the mechanical properties of PAN-based carbon fibers during high-temperature graphitization","volume":"43","author":"Liu","year":"2008","journal-title":"J. Mater. Sci."},{"key":"ref_46","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"5186","DOI":"10.1021\/ef300919d","article-title":"Graphene Sheets from Graphitized Anthracite Coal: Preparation, Decoration, and Application","volume":"26","author":"Zhou","year":"2012","journal-title":"Energy Fuels"},{"key":"ref_47","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2121","DOI":"10.1021\/ef060621z","article-title":"Characterization of asphaltenes from hydrotreated products by SEC, LDMS, MALDI, NMR, and XRD","volume":"21","author":"Trejo","year":"2007","journal-title":"Energy Fuels"},{"key":"ref_48","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"301","DOI":"10.1051\/metal\/2021026","article-title":"Attempts to replace nut coke with semi-coke for blast furnace ironmaking","volume":"118","author":"Meng","year":"2021","journal-title":"Metall. Res. Technol."},{"key":"ref_49","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"133726","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fuel.2024.133726","article-title":"Effects and mechanism of using ferro-coke in an ironmaking blast furnace\u2014A virtual experiment","volume":"382","author":"Zhao","year":"2025","journal-title":"Fuel"}],"container-title":["Materials"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1996-1944\/19\/18\/3843\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,9]],"date-time":"2026-09-09T15:03:34Z","timestamp":1788966214000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1996-1944\/19\/18\/3843"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,9]]},"references-count":49,"journal-issue":{"issue":"18","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9]]}},"alternative-id":["ma19183843"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/ma19183843","relation":{},"ISSN":["1996-1944"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1996-1944","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,9]]}}}