Genetic relationships between swamp microenvironment and sulfur distribution of the Late Paleozoic coals in North China

The genetic relationships between microenvironment of the Late Paleozoic peat-forming swamp and the sulfur contents of coal in North China have been studied by using coal-facies parameters involving gelification degree, tissue preservation index, vegetation index, transportation index, groundwater influence index, water medium indicator and swamp type index, etc. Among the various controlling factors of swamp microenvironment, swamp water medium elaborates a dominant action to sulfur accumulation in the marine-influenced coals; while coal-forming plant type, hydrodynamic state and water covering depth are more important to sulfur accumulation in the fresh water-influenced coals. Geological fractionation of sulfur isotopes reflects that sulfur accumulation experienced multi-stages evolution. Pyrite sulfurs formed earlier than organic sulfur and the sulfur isotopic δ³⁴S_p shows lower values than organic sulfur isotopic δ³⁴S_o. In the brine-influenced coals, sulfur accumulation processed relatively a long time span, the distribution of sulfur isotopes dispersed, and the coals are provided with high sulfur contents. In the fresh-water-influenced coals, sulfur accumulation occurred mainly at the syngenetic-penesyngenetic stage and the early diagenetic stage, and the total sulfur is lower and mainly composed of organic sulfur.