Coal is the nation's largest fossil fuel resource and is responsible for over 50% of the United State's electricity generation. With a 250-year reserve/production ratio of this domestic, low-cost fuel, the U.S. is likely to continue using coal as a major component of its energy portfolio for the foreseeable future. However, the issue of climate change is raising questions about coal utilization in a carbon-constrained world. In particular, the reduction of greenhouse gases, such as CO2, has been identified as necessary to stem an anthropogenic warming trend. With such a motivation, we investigate the use of a Large Eddy Simulation (LES) tool using a moment method to represent the coal phase particle distribution. The LES tool, named ARCHES, is a massively parallel, variable density, finite-volume code. The ARCHES simulation specifically focuses on validating computational results of the near burner region of an oxy-fuel coal combustor. Using ARCHES, we investigate three critical questions with simulation: 1) Can we predict ignition/kinetic/aerodynamic interactions in the near burner region? 2) Can we predict heat transfer profiles in a furnace under oxy-coal combustion conditions? 3) How much residual N2, NO, Hg, trace metals, and other contaminants are present in the furnace effluent?