Determination of rank and petrographic composition of Jurassic coals from eastern Surat Basin,Australia

Petrographic analysis and rank determination were carried out on coals from a Jurassic sequence in eastern Surat Basin, Australia. The coals consist mainly of exinite-rich clarite, with desmocollinite as dominant maceral of the vitrinite group. Petrographically there is no significant variation in the composition of the coals. A herbaceous swamp type, free from severe oxidation/ dehydration, appears to have been a dominant depositional environment during the peat accumulation.The coal rank ranges from sub-bituminous B to high-volatile bituminous C/B. Vitrinite reflectance/ depth profile shows a uniform increase in coalification with depth of burial.     

On the effects of petrographic composition on coalbed methane sorption

The effect of petrographic composition on the methane sorption capacity has been determined for a suite of coals and organic-rich shales. Subbituminous and bituminous coals were separated into bright and dull lithotypes by hand-picking. The methane sorption capacities range between 0.5 and 23.9 cm³/g at a pressure of 6 MPa. The low volatile bituminous Canmore coal and the anthracite sample have the highest capacities with the “natural coke” having the lowest. For low-rank coals there is no significant difference between bright and dull samples except for one coal with the dull sample having a greater sorption capacity than its bright equivalent. For higher-rank coals, the bright samples have a greater methane capacity than the dull samples and the difference between sample pairs increases with rank. The boghead coal samples have the highest sorption capacities in the liptinite-rich coals suite and are higher than subbituminous to medium volatile bituminous samples. Pore size distribution indicates that methane is held as solution gas in liptinite-rich coals and by physical sorption in micropores in liptinite-poor coals. These contrasting processes illustrate that liptinite-rich samples need to be independently assessed. The positive relationship between reactive inertinite content and methane sorption capacity occurs within the subbituminous to medium volatile bituminous coals because the reactive inertinite is structurally similar to vitrinite and have a higher microporosity than non-reactive inertinite. Reactivity of inertinite should be assessed in CBM studies of dull coals to provide a better understanding of petrographic composition effects on methane capacity.     

大同煤田接触变质煤的煤岩煤质变化规律

大同煤田石炭-二叠纪煤层中的岩浆岩侵入造就了大量的接触变质煤,降低了煤的利用价值。为了详细探讨岩浆岩体距煤层距离对煤的物理化学性质影响,通过对塔山井田5222巷的辉绿岩岩墙及周围煤层的地质编录、系统采样,及煤样的煤岩学分析、工业分析和元素分析,研究接触变质带的煤岩煤质特征。结果表明：接触变质煤在高温条件下生成各种天然焦微观结构,如镶嵌结构、流动结构、热解碳等;侵入体对煤层的瞬时加热显著提升了热变煤的煤级,镜质体最大反射率由正常煤的0.67%~0.87%增至接触变质煤的0.94%~3.67%;接触变质煤中水分含量和灰分产率显著升高,挥发分产率降低;靠近岩墙的煤样中C含量上升,H、N、O含量下降。综合分析认为,岩墙接触变质作用对煤层的影响范围约4.5 m,即1.25倍岩墙宽度,而严重变质带为1.6 m。研究成果为煤的开采利用评价提供依据。     

Gondwana coals of Bhutan Himalaya - Occurrence,properties and petrographic characteristics

A narrow belt of highly inclined coal-bearing Gondwana strata occurs in the extreme south-eastern part of Bhutan Himalaya. Recently, a systematic survey was undertaken along this coal belt and coals of three areas were analyzed in detail for the evaluation of their physico-chemical properties and petrographic characteristics.The entire region is in the midst of the Great Himalayan orogenic belt, and the whole stratigraphic sequence underwent several diastrophic movements in the geological past. The massive effects of these orogenies is more pronounced in the coal beds of Gondwana sequence, and due to severe crushing and tectonic shearing these coals became powdery and flaky in nature. Significantly, the coals retained their pre-deformational rank exhibiting typical high-volatile, low-rank, bituminous characters, with mild caking propensities. Also these coals are markedly low in sulphur, phosphorus, chlorine and carbonate content like that of Peninsular Gondwana coals.Petrographic studies of these Bhutan coals revealed a close similarity with the eastern Raniganj coals (Upper Permian) of Peninsular India. The tectonic shearing and crushing of the coals are exhibited by the frequent presence of microfolding, microfaulting, and other compressional structures. However, the coals of all the three areas have shown a consistently low order of reflectance values.This typical retention of pre-deformational low-rank bituminous character is a significant feature of Bhutan coals. It shows that massive orogenic movements were only able to physically crush these coals but could not generate the requisite thermal regime to raise the rank of these coals.     

Coal and coke petrographic investigations into the fusibility of Carboniferous and Permian coking coals

For the purpose of conducting coal/coke mass balance calculations ten Australian coals of Permian age and twenty Carboniferous coals from the Ruhr district of Germany have been carbonized, and both feed coal and coke samples have been subjected to petrographic and other laboratory analyses. The results demonstrate that inertinite dissociates thermally into four components: (1) gas and liquor; (2) fused coke matrix (FCM); (3) partly fused coke inclusions (PFCI); and (4) unfused coke inclusions (UFCI). Fluorescence intensity measurements offer the best means of identification of the boundaries between the above groups and, in doing so, divide coal components into fusible, partly fusible and infusible constituents without the need to refer to any maceral classification. Fluorescence intensity cut-offs for the three solid categories have been determined. They correspond to 3% 1 650 w for FCM/PFCI and 1.5% for PFCI/UFCI.     

Study of petrographic composition and depositional environment of the coals from Queen seam of Yellendu area,Godavari valley coalfield,Andhra Pradesh

The study of coal succession from bore hole No. Q-448 of Yellendu area of the Godavari valley coalfield, Andhra Pradesh reveals that the coals of Queen seam are high volatile bituminous C in rank and have vitrinite reflectance (R_o max %) varying between of 0.52 and 0.62%. The petrographic constitution however, suggests that the depositional site appears to be a slowly sinking and tectonically controlled basin, having received continuous supply of vegetal matter rich resource at regular intervals. The formation of inertinite rich coal suggests, oxidising enviornment of deposition. The dominence of vitrinite and liptinite constituents in these coals postulates the existence of alternating cold and humid spells. The present study indicates that these coals originated under an alternate oxic and anoxic moor condition.     

Influence of petrographical composition on coking behavior of inertinite-rich coals

Medium-rank inertinite-rich coal samples were collected for study from limnic and paralic facies in the Upper Silesian coal basin of Poland. The microlithotypes seem to control the content of the mosaic textures. It also appears that carbominerites favor the formation of pyrolytic carbons. The coke obtained from poorly pyrofusinitized, homogeneous, limnic coal has higher mechanical strength with larger and thicker cell walls, and is less porous than those derived from highly pyrofusinitized, heterogenous paralic ones. The microstructure of the cokes appears to be controlled by different amounts of fibers and coarse mosaics.     

Stratigraphic and regional variation of the petrographic and chemical properties of the Tradewater Formation coals and surrounding rocks in western Kentucky

The stratigraphic and regional variation of petrographic and chemical properties within the coals of the Upper Carboniferous Tradewater Formation and surrounding rocks in the Western Kentucky coal field were analyzed with the intent of constructing a depositional model for the occurrence of these low sulfur coals. Cores were megascopically described, and coal samples were analyzed for maceral, ash, and sulfur contents. These data were then analyzed to determine regional variation within the study area, as well as vertical variation within single coal columns.Sedimentological data from core logs indicate that the majority of the Tradewater rocks consist of irregularly distributed, coarsening-upward, fine-grained detrital material that was deposited in shallow bodies of water. Fossiliferous shales and limestones indicate a marine influence. Less common coarse-grained, fining-upward sequences appear to represent deposits of meandering or braided channels.Like the detrital rocks, the coal seams are irregularly distributed and exhibit substantial variation in petrographic and chemical properties which reflect changes in the Eh and pH of the coal swamp waters. These individual swamps were relatively limited in extent and probably occupied a low-lying coastal area. The relatively high vitrinite content of most of the coals suggests a reasonable degree of preservation of decaying plant materials. The study of benched samples from surface mines suggests a distinct dichotomy between swamps that were in more or less continuous contact with sulfate-rich marine or brackish water and those in which peat accumulated in a dominantly fresh-water setting. Most of the latter show a pattern of upward increasing sulfur content and decreasing vitrinite content, indicating increasing influences of oxygenated water that would encourage microbial action and which would degrade the peat and increase the tendency for sulfide precipitation. The high sulfur coals do not display this variability. The high rates of lateral variability encountered in the data suggest that future study should concentrate on smaller areas where variation can be completely documented.     

Paleoenvironmental interpretation of the Amynteon–Ptolemaida lignite deposit in northern Greece based on its petrographic composition

The objective of this study was to reconstruct the paleoenviromnent during formation of the deposit at Amynteon–Ptolemaida based mainly on its petrographic but also supported by its paleobotanic character and fossils found in the lignite beds themselves. The deposit of Amynteon occurs in the northern part of the elongated basin of Ptolemaida–Amynteon. The type of lignite formation is, in general terms, similar to the deposit of Ptolemaida, and the lignite is present in the Pleistocene strata of the basin. The alternating nature of lignite and interburden is an important characteristic of the deposit. In this study, we selected 20 samples of lignite from a representative drillhole, namely B-258 in order to discern its petrography. Optical microscopy showed that the huminite group macerals are dominant, ranging from 42.5% to 95.3%. Humotelinite is present in low to high quantities (12.0–79.5%), followed closely by humodetrinite. Humocollinite is present in very small amounts. In addition, macerals of the liptinite and inertinite groups are found in small concentrations, with a few exceptions.A number of indices, such as gelification index (GI), vegetation index (VI), groundwater index (GWI), tissue preservation index (TPI), and their ratios (e.g., VI/GWI, TPI/GI), were used to reconstruct the conditions prevailing during peat formation. The results indicate that the paleoenvironment was mainly limnic at the initial stages and transitioned to limnotelmatic with occasional rheotrophic conditions. The organic matter responsible for lignite formation developed mainly in a forested swamp environment with occasional transitions either towards a wet limnic (open water) or a drier telmatic environment.     

Relation between the deposition and petrology of Shanxi coals and the composition of their extracts

The soluble organic material present in a set of 12 coal samples representing three major episodes of coal deposition in Shanxi Province, North China, has been examined. Shanxi coals, like those from Gondwanaland, contain little liptinite and accordingly the material extracted by pyridine yields only small quantities of n-hexane soluble n-alkanes, steranes and hopanes identifiable by gas-chromatography/mass spectrometry. The distribution of the n-alkanes is characteristic of the environment from which each of the Shanxi coals was formed but the distribution of the branched alkanes is generally determined by the dia- and catagenesis each coal experienced. Aromatic compounds identified in the extracts typify the small molecules present within the vitrinite lattice. Technologically significant benzene-methanol extracts deriving from vitrinite-inertinite have been characterised by proton NMR spectroscopy and partially separated by HPLC.     

Mineralogical composition and ash geochemistry of raw and beneficiated high sulfur coals

Coal is one of the most available energy sources on earth. The mineralogical and geo-chemical aspects of coals are of prime importance for their utilization. The mineralogical composition, ash chemistry, and ash fusion temperature (AFT) ranges of raw and beneficiated coals are investigated in this paper. Further, the mineral matter transformation during the beneficiation processes viz. by oxidative desulfurization; alkali extraction and ultrasonication along with the relationship of the ash fusion temperature (AFT) ranges with the ash components in the coal are discussed. The major oxides present in the coal and beneficiated coal ashes include Fe₂O₃, Al₂O₃, SiO₂, CaO, and MgO, which significantly affect the ash fusion temperature ranges. Initial deformation temperature (IDT) changes with the ash components and, increases with the increase in the Fe₂O₃ content in coal ash. With increasing concentrations of both Al₂O₃ and SiO₂, the initial deformation temperature (IDT) also increases. The increasing and decreasing nature of the initial deformation temperature (IDT) observed is also dependent upon the CaO and MgO contents. XRD analysis of the coal samples revealed significant changes in mineral matter contents with the types of beneficiation processes adopted for coal. The minerals like chlorite, illite, montmorillonite, pyrite, calcite, aragonite, and alumina have been removed during the beneficiation processes. The FTIR spectra also indicate the presence of minerals like gypsum (G), calcite (C) aragonite (Ar), quartz (Q) and kaolinite (K) in the raw coal and their subsequent removal after the beneficiation processes.     

The elemental and isotopic composition of sulfur and nitrogen in Chinese coals

Coal combustion is an important atmospheric pollution source in most Chinese cities, so systematic studies on sulfur and nitrogen in Chinese coals are needed. The sulfur contents in Chinese coals average 0.9 ± 1.0%, indicating that most Chinese coals are low in sulfur. A nearly constant mean δ³⁴S value is observed in low sulfur (TS < 1) Chinese coals of different ages (D, P₁, T₃ and J₃). High sulfur Chinese coals (OS > 0.8%), often found at late Carboniferous (C₃) and late Permian (P₂) in southern China, had two main sulfur sources (original plant sulfur and secondary sulfur). The wide variety of δ³⁴S values of Chinese coals (−15‰ to +50‰) is a result of a complex sulfur origin. The δ¹⁵N values of Chinese coals ranged from −6‰ to +4‰, showing a lack of correlation with coal ages, whereas nitrogen contents are higher in Paleozoic coals than in Mesozoic coals. This may be related to their original precursor plant species: high nitrogen pteridophytes for the Paleozoic coals and low nitrogen gymnosperms for the Mesozoic coals. Different to δ³⁴S values, Chinese coals showed higher δ¹⁵N values in marine environments than in freshwater environments.     

Sulphur and carbon isotopic composition of power supply coals in the Pannonian Basin, Hungary

The present work is an attempt to establish the stable isotope database for Mesozoic to Tertiary coals from the Pannonian Basin, Hungary. Maceral composition, proximate analysis, sulphur form, sulphur isotopes (organic and pyritic), and carbon isotopes were determined. This database supports the assessment of the environmental risks associated with energy generation, the characterization of the formation and the distribution of sulphur in the coals used.The maceral composition, the sulphur composition, the C, S isotopic signatures, and some of the geological evidences published earlier show that the majority of these coals were deposited in freshwater and brackish water environments, despite the relatively high average sulphur content. However, the Upper Cretaceous, Eocene, and Lower Miocene formations also contain coal seams of marine origin, as indicated by their maceral composition and sulphur and carbon chemistry.The majority of the sulphur in these coals occurs in the organic form. All studied sulphur phases are relatively rich in ³⁴S isotopes (δ³⁴S_organic = + 12.74‰, δ³⁴S_pyrite = + 10.06‰, on average). This indicates that marine bacterial sulphate reduction played a minor role in their formation, in the sense that isotopic fractionation was limited. It seems that the interstitial spaces of the peat closed rapidly during early diagenesis due to a regime of high depositional rate, leading to a relative enrichment of the heavy sulphur isotopes.     

贵州燃煤型地方性砷中毒地区煤的矿物组成

采用低温灰化（LTA）和X衍射粉晶分析（XRD）,结合带X光能谱的扫描电子显微镜（SEM—EDX）等方法研究了贵州燃煤型地方性砷中毒地区煤的矿物组成,计算了各矿物的相对含量,初步探讨了煤中主要的含砷矿物。      

The role of coal petrographic characteristics in evaluating the non-coking nature of the coals of ramagundam and Kothagudem coalfields,Godavari Valley Basin,Andhra Pradesh,India

The maceral and microlithotype compositions of coals representative of the different coal seams of the Ramagundam and Kothagudem coalfields, Godavari Valley Basin, are compared with those of the Ib River, Talcher, South Karanpura, Hura, and Brahmani coalfields. The vitrite + clarite—“Intermidiates”—durite + fusite + shale (<20%) triangular diagram places these coals in the area of non-coking coals, clearly distinct from the coking and semi-coking coals. The vitrinite reflectance is low (R_ormoil^aver: 0.38–0.71%), far below the coking-coal range. Thus, based on petrographic composition and rank, these coals are of non-coking nature. A triangular diagram is proposed delineating the coking, semi-coking and non-coking coal areas for the Gondwana coals of India.     

Preliminary investigation on the metamorphism of Chinese coals

The fact that most Chinese coals are of a relatively high degree of coalification indicates that the metamorphism of Chinese coals has its own characteristics. As contact metamorphism and dynamic metamorphism have influenced the coals only to a restricted extent, they are not the causes of this distinguishing feature. Though geothermal metamorphism of coal occurs universally in China, the maximum subsidence as reflected by the thickness of coal measures and their overlying rock series is so small that the palaeo-temperature to which most Chinese coals were subjected was low and only low-ranking coals were formed. Hence, geothermal metamorphism is also not the principal cause of the higher ranking Chinese coals. Next to temperature, time is an important factor in geothermal metamorphism; the degree of coalification is dependent on the temperature and duration of heating that the coal has undergone.It is inferred that palaeogeothermal anomalies ought to be held responsible for most of the higher ranking Chinese coals. They are principally caused by magmatic intrusions, or by deep-seated faults, or by the uplift of the Moho with the corresponding uplift of the asthenosphere, and these three causes are interrelated. Telemagmatic metamorphism has so widely influenced Chinese coals that it accounts mainly for the majority of higher-rank Chinese coals. Consequently Chinese coals have first and universally been coalified by geothermal alteration to lower rank and then partially promoted by telemagmatic metamorphism to medium and high ranks. Based upon the patterns of magmatic intrusions and associated hydrothermal processes, the telemagmatic metamorphism of Chinese coals can be tentatively divided into the following types: (1) type a, produced mainly by hypabyssal or meso-epimagmatic intrusions; (2) type b, produced mainly by hydrothermalism from blind intrusive bodies; (3) type c, produced mainly by mesoepimagmatic and epimagmatic intrusions; and (4) type d, produced mainly by hydrothermalism and epimagmatic intrusions. Characteristics of coalification zones, wall rocks and coal itself may be used as criteria to differentiate the telemagmatic metamorphism from other kinds of metamorphism. Magmatic activities which caused the telemagmatic metamorphism and its extent are controlled by structural systems, especially by the latitudinal structural systems and other structural systems associated with the former.     

Automated petrographic characterization of coal lithotypes

Although petrographic analysis of the lithotypes present in coal samples has been successfully used in the correlation of coal seams, the study of the environments of coal seam deposition, and the evaluation of the mining and cleaning properties of numerous coal seams, coal lithotype analysis is not routinely performed in North America at this time because it is very time consuming and requires the services of a highly skilled petrographer. The objective of this study was to evaluate the capability of one of the newly improved image analysis microscope systems to characterize coal lithotypes and perform automated lithotype analyses on polished block samples of coal.The results of this study show that each of the lithotypes examined, vitrain, clarain, fusain, and durain, yield a characteristic reflectance histogram and that analysis of reflectance histograms taken from a transverse, perpendicular to bedding, down a polished block sample yield results on the kinds and thicknesses of the lithotypes present that are in good agreement with the results obtained by manual methods.