Moist caustic leaching of coal

A process for reducing the sulfur and ash content of coal, comprising introducing particulate coal into a closed heated reaction chamber having an inert atmosphere, introducing moist caustic wherein the caustic is 50 mole percent NaOH and 50 mole percent KOH and wherein the weight ratio of caustic to coal is about 5 to 1, said moist caustic having a water content in the range of from about 15% by weight to about 35% by weight into the reaction chamber in contact with the coal and maintaining the coal and moist caustic at a temperature not less than about 300.degree. C., transporting the coal and moist caustic to a slurry tank, adding water to the coal and caustic mixture to form an aqueous slurry and thereafter washing said coal with water to remove caustic from the coal and to produce an aqueous caustic solution, evaporating water from the aqueous caustic solution until the caustic has water present in the range of from about 15% by weight to about 35% by weight and reintroducing the moist caustic to the closed reaction chamber, adding sufficient acid to the washed coal slurry to neutralize any remaining caustic present on the coal, washing and thereafter drying the neutralized coal slurry to produce desulfurized coal having not less than about 90% by weight of the sulfur present in the coal feed removed with at least about 80% by weight of the organic sulfur present in the coal feed removed and having an ash content of less than about 2% by weight.