Book excerpt: Solid Fuels and Heavy Hydrocarbon Liquids: Thermal Characterisation and Analysis, Second Edition integrates the developments that have taken place since publication of the first edition in 2006. This updated material includes new insights that help unify the thermochemical reactions of biomass and coal, as well as new developments in analytical techniques, including new applications in size exclusion chromatography, several mass spectrometric techniques, and new applications of nuclear magnetic spectroscopy to the characterization of heavy hydrocarbon liquids The topics covered are essential for the energy and fuels research community, including academics, students, and research engineers working in the power, oil and gas, and renewable energy industries. - Includes a description of the principles and design of experiments used for assessing the reactivities, reactions, and reaction products of coal and lignocellulosic biomass - Features an outline of recent advances in the analytical methodology for characterizing heavy petroleum derived fractions and products from the thermochemical reactions of coal and biomass - Provides a link between samples, reaction conditions, and product characteristics to help in the search for upgrading methods for heavy hydrocarbon liquids