Uses
Coke is used as a fuel and as a reducing agent in smelting iron ore in a blast furnace. It is there to reduce the iron oxide (hematite) in order to collect iron.
Since smoke-producing constituents are driven off during the coking of coal, coke forms a desirable fuel for stoves and furnaces in which conditions are not suitable for the complete burning of bituminous coal itself. Coke may be burned with little or no smoke under combustion conditions, while bituminous coal would produce much smoke.
Discovered by accident to have superior heat shielding properties when combined with other materials, coke was one of the materials used in the heat shielding on NASA's Apollo program space vehicles. In its final form, this material was called AVCOAT 5026-39. This material has been used most recently as the heat shielding on the Mars Pathfinder vehicle. Although not used for modern day space shuttles, NASA had been planning to utilize coke and other materials for the heat shield for its next generation space craft, named Orion, before that project's cancellation. Orion survived Constellation's cancellation and is in development as NASA's next BEO (Beyond Earth Orbit) manned, spacecraft
Coke was widely used as a substitute for coal in domestic heating following the creation of Smokeless zones in the United Kingdom when the government paid for new grates suitable for the fuel. Ironically the grates required the use of a gas fired poker to light the fuel so the new installation included installation of a gas line adjacent to the fireplace. Most consumers converted to a gas fire designed to work with an existing chimney within a few years.
Highland Park distillery in Orkney malt barley for use in their Scotch whisky in kilns burning a mixture of coke and peat. The peat is burned for the initial stage of roasting the barley - while the barley can still absorb the particular desired aromas of the peat - lasting for approximately 12 hours; then for the final 36 hours the barley is roasted under the heat of the burning coke.
Read more about this topic: Coke (fuel)