In the vertically oriented generally cylindrical coal pulverizers that are widely employed to supply a coal-air dispersion to the combustion zones of boilers producing steam for the turbines of electric-power plants, forced-air requirements are reduced and coal fall-back and resultant coal fires are substantially eliminated by the novel throat ring of invention. A throat ring surrounds circumferentially the coal grinding assembly of each such pulverizer and contains a plurality of angularly disposed air channels through which air is forced upwardly into contact with pulverized coal thrust centrifugally from the said assembly causing the coal-air mixture to swirl upwardly to means directing the mixture to the said combustion zones. The air channels in the throat ring of invention are in effect of reduced cross-section and comprise a convex bevel of the outer-diameter wall of each channel from the said wall to the outer rim of the throat ring thus defining the exit port of each channel of an area equivalent to the cross-section of the air-channels of the throat ring which it replaces.