ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Coal blending

Imagine you have a bunch of different colored toy blocks. Let's say you have red blocks, blue blocks, and yellow blocks.

Now, what if you want to make a new color that isn't there? For example, purple. You could mix red and blue blocks together to create purple, right? That's kind of like what coal blending is.

Coal blending is when different types of coal are mixed together to create a new type of coal. Just like mixing different colors of toy blocks together to make a new color.

Sometimes, coal that comes from different mines or locations may have different qualities. Some types of coal burn hotter or have less pollution when burned. So, by blending different types of coal together, power plants can create a type of coal that has the right amount of heat and has less pollution when burned.

So, coal blending is kind of like mixing different toy blocks together to make a new color. Power plants use different types of coal to create a type of coal that has the right qualities to make electricity and pollute less.