ABOUT COAL

M. Arifin

INTRODUCTION
Coal is a readily combustible
rock containing more than 50
percent
by
weight
of
carbonaceous material, formed
from
compaction
and
indurations of variously altered
plant remains similar to those
in peat. Most coal is fossil peat.
Peat is an unconsolidated
deposit of plant remains from a
water-saturated
environment
such as a bog or mire;
structures of the vegetal matter
can be seen, and, when dried,
peat burns freely.
Adapted from AGI's Glossary of
Geology.

Forests from the Carboniferous Age which were transformed into

coal over millions of years

RESOURCES
Coal Formed
Coal is formed by the physical
and chemical alteration of peat
(coalification) by processes
involving
bacterial
decay,
compaction, heat, and time.
Coal is an agglomeration of
many
different
complex
hydrocarbon
compounds,
some of which owe their origin
to the original constituents in
the peat.
Peat deposits are actually quite
varied and contain everything
from pristine plant parts (roots,
bark, spores, etc.) to decayed
plants, decay products, and
even to charcoal if the peat
caught fire.

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Coal Formed, cont
Peat deposits typically form in a waterlogged environment where plant debris is accumulated;
peat bogs and peat swamps are examples. In such an environment, the accumulation of plant
debris exceeds the rate of bacterial decay of the debris. The bacterial decay rate is reduced
because the available oxygen in organic-rich water is completely used up by the decay
process. Anaerobic (without oxygen) decay is much slower than aerobic decay.
In order for the peat to become coal, it must be buried by sediment. Burial causes compaction
of the peat and, consequently, much water is squeezed out during the first stages of burial.
Continued burial and the addition of heat and time cause the complex hydrocarbon
compounds in the deposit to start to break down and alter in a variety of ways. The gaseous
alteration products (methane is one) are typically expelled from the deposit and the deposit
becomes more and more carbon-rich (the other elements drop out). The stages of this trend
proceed from plant debris, peat, lignite, sub-bituminous coal, bituminous coal, anthracite coal,
to graphite (a pure carbon mineral).
Because of the amount of squeezing and water loss that accompanies the compaction of peat
after burial, it is estimated that it took vertical 10 feet of original peat material to produce one
vertical foot of bituminous coal. The peat to coal ratio is variable and dependent on the original
type of peat the coal came from and the rank of the coal.

RESOURCES
Coal Formation

Coal were formed from plants and animals that lived 300 million years ago in primordial
swamps and oceans (left). Over time the plants and animals died and decomposed under
tons of rock and ancient seas (middle). Eventually, many of the seas receded and left dry
land with coal buried underneath it (right). Ten feet of prehistoric plant debris was needed to
make one foot of coal.

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Coal Components
Coal, an organic deposit, is made
up of organic grains called
macerals,
which
under
the
microscope is separated into three
maceral groups, and each of it is
composed of several maceral
types. These groups are liptinite,
vitrinite, and inertinite and are
defined according to their grayness
in reflected light: liptinites are dark
gray, vitrinites are medium to light
gray, and inertinites are white and
can be very bright.
Liptinites were made up of hydrogen-rich hydrocarbons derived from spores, pollens, cuticles,
and resins in the original plant material. Vitrinites were made up of wood, bark, and roots and
contained less hydrogen than the liptinites. Inertinites are mainly oxidation products of the
other macerals and are consequently richer in carbon. The inertinite group includes fusinite,
most of which is fossil charcoal, derived from ancient peat fires.

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Coal Components, cont
Liptinites were made up of
hydrogen-rich
hydrocarbons
derived from spores, pollens,
cuticles, and resins in the original
plant material. Vitrinites were
made up of wood, bark, and
roots
and
contained
less
hydrogen than the liptinites.
Inertinites are mainly oxidation
products of the other macerals
and are consequently richer in
carbon. The inertinite group
includes fusinite, most of which is
fossil charcoal, derived from ancient peat fires.
Microscopic view of coal; yellow area is vitrinite; white grains are inertinite; gray shapes are
liptinites (plant spores); dark brown areas are tiny grains of vitrinite.

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Coal Components, cont
Coals can also be divided into two
types based on their macroscopic
(not microscopic) appearance:
banded and non-banded. Nonbanded coals include cannel and
boghead coals, both of which are
dull and blocky.
Cannel is derived from the word
candle, because pencil-shaped
pieces were used as candles in
the past. Banded coals grade
from dull banded (splint coal) to bright banded coals, depending upon whether dull bands or
bright bands are dominant.
The bands are divided into lithotypes. Dull bands are called durain; satiny bands are clarain;
charcoal bands are fusain; and black, glassy bands are vitrain. Bright coals have lots of
vitrain and clarain; dull coals are rich in durain bands. Fusain generally occurs only in thin
and sporadic bands.

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Coal Components, cont
Splint coals are durain-rich and can be
massive (non-banded) or banded. Most
vitrain- and clarain-rich banded coals
break into small blocky pieces along
joints called cleats. Vitrain and clarain
are brittle and break easily. "Block
coals" are dull coals that break into
large blocks because they have fewer
vitrain and clarain bands, but have a
composition higher in liptinite macerals,
which are tough. "Bone" and "bone
coals" have a high ash content in the
form of clays and silts; they form part of
a continuum between dark shale and
dull (banded or non-banded) coal in the
following sequence: dark shale, bone
(greater than 50 percent ash), boney
coal (less than 50 percent ash), dull coal
(cannel, boghead, or splint).

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Coal Type
Coal is generally classified by
what is known as "rank"
which is based on the degree
of transformation of the
original plant material to
carbon.
Low rank coal:
Lignite
Sub Bituminous
Hard coal:
Bituminous
Anthracite

RESOURCES
Coal Type
These classes are further
divided into subclasses
based on their degree of
alteration (measured by
volatile-matter
content,
calorie, or by petrographic
means).

miningtrading.com

RESOURCES
Coal Type
Lignite
Lignite - also known as brown coal - is
a dark brown to black combustible
mineral formed over millions of years
by the partial decomposition of plant
material subject to increased pressure
and temperature. Lignite is coal with
low organic maturity. It is characterized
by its high moisture content and low
carbon/energy content compared to
high rank coals such as anthracite.
Due to its high moisture content and
relatively low calorific value, lignite is
usually consumed at or close to where
it is produced/mined.

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RESOURCES
Coal Type
Sub-bituminous Coal
Sub-bituminous coal is the next highest
coal in rank after lignite. It is softer than
bituminous coal and contains more
moisture, making it less economic to
transport long distances. Sub-bituminous
has typical bed moisture levels of
between 10-20% and a carbon content of
between 71-77%.
Sub-bituminous coal can be dull, dark
brown to black in colour and soft and
crumbly in quality, to bright, jet black, hard
and strong. Used primarily as fuel for
power
generation
and
industrial
processes, sub-bituminous coal has
properties ranging from those of lignite or
bituminous coal.

miningtrading.com

RESOURCES
Coal Type
Bituminous Coal
Bituminous coal is classified as
coal which in terms of rank falls
between sub-bituminous and
semi-anthracite. Volatile matter
can vary widely and bituminous
coal is typically divided into
three sub-groups - low volatile,
medium volatile and high
volatile.
Bituminous
coal
can
be
metallurgical (also known as
coking coal) or thermal (also
known as steam coal).

miningtrading.com

RESOURCES
Coal Type
Anthracite
Anthracite is the highest rank coal and
is characterized by low volatile matter
(always less than 10%) and high carbon
content - it contains about 90% fixed
carbon, more than any other form of
coal.
Anthracite has a semi-metallic lustre
and is capable of burning without smoke
(smokeless fuel). It is used in domestic
and industrial applications. Anthracite is
the least plentiful of all the coals.

MINING

Mining is classified by the method needed to reach the coal seam. When the coal is found
close to the Earth's crust and taking away the overlying layers of material is not too
expensive, surface mining is used to remove the top layers of materials and expose the
coal.
If coal is found in layers far from the surface, underground mining is the preferred technique.
Vertical or slanted holes ("shafts") are cut down to the mining area underground for
ventilation for the workers and for transporting the miners, equipment, and coal.

MINING
Strip Mining
Surface mining is accomplished by
removing overburden from the
coal seam and then blasting and
removing the coal. The ratio of
overburden excavated to the
amount of coal removed is called
the overburden ratio. The lower
the ratio, the more productive the
mine.
Equipment used in surface mines
include
draglines,
shovels,
bulldozers,
front-end
loaders,
bucket wheel excavators and
trucks. In large mines, draglines
remove the overburden while
shovels are used to load the coal.
In smaller mines, bulldozers and
front-end loaders are often used to
remove overburden.

MINING
Surface Coal Mining Equipments

belt conveyor

Bucket wheel excavator

Bulldozer

Hydraulic excavator

Dump truck

MINING
Underground Mining
Common types of
underground mining
are the drift, shaft,
and slope mining
methods. Based on
the mining system,
underground mining
consists of longwall
mining and room and
pillar mining.

MINING
Longwall Mining
In longwall mining, a
cutting head moves
back
and
forth
across a panel of
coal about 800 feet
in width and up to
7,000 feet in length.
The cut coal falls
onto
a
flexible
conveyor
for
removal. Longwall
mining
is
done
under hydraulic roof
supports
(shields)
that are advanced
as the seam is cut.
The roof in the
mined out areas
falls as the shields
advance.

MINING
Longwall Mining Equipments

Coal shearer

Hydraulic support

Face conveyor

Belt conveyor

miningtrading.com

MINING
Room and Pillar

In longwall mining, a cutting head moves back and forth across a panel of coal about 800 feet in width
and up to 7,000 feet in length. The cut coal falls onto a flexible conveyor for removal. Longwall mining is
done under hydraulic roof supports (shields) that are advanced as the seam is cut. The roof in the mined
out areas falls as the shields advance.

miningtrading.com

PREPARATION
Coal preparation, also know
as coal beneficiation, is the
stage in coal production
when the raw run-of-mine
coal is processed into a
range of clean, graded, and
uniform products suitable for
the commercial market.

PREPARATION
First, the mined coal is loaded
into a stockpile, with a reclaim
tunnel beneath it. Then, the coal
is transported to a raw coal silo,
usually 10,000 ton capacity, for
feed to the plant at a constant
rate.

In this instance the first stage is a crushing/screening plant, with heavy media processing (for
coarse coal sizes - 2" x 10 mesh), spirals for the middling sizes (10 mesh x 60 mesh),
flotation for the -60 mesh fine coal feed. The cleaned coal is then transported to the next
plant, which is a series of thermal dryers for reducing the moisture content and thereby
raising the BTU value of the coal. The final dried coal product is then transported to the clean
coal silo's for loading onto a train for transport to the end user.

miningtrading.com

Coal Transport
Once coal has been extracted it needs to be moved from the mine to the power plant or
other place of use. Over short distances coal is generally transported by conveyor or
truck, whereas trains, barges, ships or pipelines are used for long distances.

by train

by truck

Coal properties and uses

The chief uses of coal mined
are electricity generation, heat,
and coking coal for iron and
steel making. Electricity
generation far surpasses the
other uses of Kentucky coal.
Each of these uses has specific
requirements, but generally a
high Btu value, and a low sulfur,
ash, and moisture content are
desirable. The important
properties of coal are
dependent upon the specific
industrial use of the coal.
Undesirable chemical
constituents in coal such as
sulfur, chlorine, sodium, and
various hazardous air pollutants
The
of for
a coal
is a property that determines how easily these chemical constituents
maywashability
be important
some
and
ash content of the coal can be reduced through preparation before the coal is used.
usesthe
of coal.
Important handling properties include grindability, content of scaling agents (chlorine and sodium
cause scaling in boilers), and ash fusion. Ash fusion is a property that indicates whether the ash
totally melts (low ash fusion) and must be removed from the boiler as a liquid, or forms "clinkers"
or cinders (high ash fusion) that must be removed as a solid. Boilers are designed to burn coals
with specific ash fusions for this reason.

miningtrading.com

USES
Coal has many important uses, but most
significantly in electricity generation, steel and
cement manufacture, and industrial process
heating.
Coal is the major fuel source for electric power
generation worldwide. More than half of total
world coal production provides around 38% of
the world's electricity.
Coal is also indispensable for iron and steel
production; almost 70% of total global steel
production is dependent on coal. About 600
million tons of coal - equivalent to approximately
16% of total hard coal production - is currently
utilized by the steel industry.

miningtrading.com

USES
Power Generation

USES
Steelmaking

miningtrading.com

Coal Mining Cycle

pra / post mining area

coal mining area

coal mining

coal utilizing

coal transporting

coal stockfilling

MINING
Longwall Mining
In longwall mining, large
rectangular blocks of coal are
defined during the development
stage and are then extracted in
a single continuous operation.
Each defined block of coal,
know as a panel, is created by
driving a set of headings from
main or trunk roadways, some
distance into the panel. These
roadways are then joined to
form the starting face of
longwall face.
Coal is extracted mechanically
from longwall faces. As the coal
is cut the longwall face is
supported with hydraulically
operated supports. The function
of these supports is to provide a safe working environment by supporting the roof as coal is extracted as
well as advancing the longwall equipment. As the face advances the immediate roof above the coal is
allowed to collapse behind the line of support forming the goaf.

MINING
Room and Pillar Mining
In longwall mining, large
rectangular blocks of coal are
defined during the development
stage and are then extracted in
a single continuous operation.
Each defined block of coal,
know as a panel, is created by
driving a set of headings from
main or trunk roadways, some
distance into the panel. These
roadways are then joined to
form the starting face of
longwall face.
Coal is extracted mechanically
from longwall faces. As the coal
is cut the longwall face is
supported with hydraulically
operated supports. The function
of these supports is to provide a safe working environment by supporting the roof as coal is extracted as
well as advancing the longwall equipment. As the face advances the immediate roof above the coal is
allowed to collapse behind the line of support forming the goaf.