Calcium ferrite (CaFe2O4) absorbents of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) for hot-gas cleaning were prepared in the presence of Yallourn coal (YL). Calcium and iron nitrates in aqueous solution were impregnated onto YL, which was then dried at 70degreesC in vacuo and calcined at various temperatures in air. The performance of the absorbent was evaluated using a fixed-bed flow-type reactor that was equipped with a quadrupole mass spectrometer. The surface area of the YL char-loaded CaFe2O4 (CaFe2O4/YL) was ca. 25 m(2)/g, and its value was the same order of magnitude as those of unloaded ferrites that had been prepared by a coprecipitation method. The morphological structures of CaFe2O4/YL showed a rough surface with a macroporous structure; however, the surface of unloaded ferrites prepared by the dry process and the coprecipitation method was smooth and flat. When the absorption behaviors of CaFe2O4/YL for H2S were measured at 500degreesC, the absorption capacity of H2S with CaFe2O4/YL exhibited almost 100% of the stoichiometric amount of loaded metal species and could efficiently remove 4000 ppm of H2S to a level of < 1 ppm under a space velocity of 2800 h(-1).