Coal

Coal is a solid carbon-rich substance that is generally brown or black and found in layered sedimentary deposits, making it one of the most important primary fossil fuels. Coal is a rich and diverse natural resource that may be utilised for energy, as a chemical source for a variety of synthetic chemicals, and in the creation of coke for metallurgical operations. Coal is a primary source of energy for steam generation, which is used to generate electricity. 

Naturally occurring substances obtained from nature are referred to as natural resources. These natural resources are abundantly present in nature. Natural resources are further divided into:

• Inexhaustible Natural Resources: Inexhaustible resources are also termed renewable resources, which can quickly be recovered. These resources are abundant in nature and cannot be rapidly exhausted by anthropogenic activities. For example- sunlight, air, etc
• Exhaustible Natural Resources: Exhaustible resources are also termed non-renewable resources. These resources can be exhausted quickly by anthropogenic activities and cannot be replenished quickly. These resources are limited in nature. For example- forests, minerals, coal, petroleum, natural gas, etc

Fossil fuels like coal, petroleum, and natural gas are considered exhaustible resources. The end product obtained from the remains of dead organisms is called Fossil Fuels.

Types of Coal

Mineral rocks, which are formed of inorganic stuff, are not the same as coal. Coal is made up of delicate plant matter that goes through a number of transformations before becoming the recognizable black and gleaming material that is burnt as fuel.

Over millions of years, coal goes through many stages of carbonization and may be found in various stages of development in different places of the world.

Peat

Peat isn’t really coal, but it has the potential to become coal under the appropriate conditions. Peat is made up of partially decaying plants that have been carbonized to a minor degree. Peat is still regarded as a member of the coal “family” since it carries the same energy as its parent plants did. It also includes a lot of volatile materials and gases, like methane and mercury, that are both harmful to the environment when burned.

Lignite

Lignite, often known as brown coal or rosebud coal, is a crumbly brown rock that holds more moisture than other varieties of coal. This makes mining, storing, and transporting it expensive and risky. It is prone to accidental combustion and emits a large amount of carbon dioxide when burned. The majority of lignite coal is utilized in power plants close to where it is mined.

Graphite

Graphite is a carbon allotrope, which means it’s composed entirely of carbon atoms. (Another form of carbon is diamond.) The carbonization process comes to a close with graphite. Graphite is most often produced in China, India, and Brazil.

Coal

Coal is a type of fossil fuel. Coal is combustible black, and it is hard as stone. Coal is used as fuel in both households and several industries.

Process of Coal Formation

• Over hundreds of millions of years, dead plant debris immersed in wetland conditions is exposed to geological forces of heat and pressure, becoming coal
• Natural processes, like flooding, buried forests under the soil
• With time, soil deposition occurs and gets compressed. As the remains sank more profoundly, the temperature also rose
• Under the influence of high temperature and pressure, dead plants get converted into coal
• The conversion of dead vegetation into coal is slow, and this step is called carbonization

In the presence of heat, coal burning produces carbon dioxide gas. Industrial processing of coal yields useful products like Coke, coal tar, and Coal gas. 

Coke: Coke is a rigid, porous, and black substance. It is the purest form of carbon. Coke is used in the manufacturing of steel and the extraction of metals.

Coal Tar 

Coal tar is a black and thick liquid with an unpleasant smell. It is a mixture of approximately 200 substances

• Coal tar is used to manufacture synthetic dyes, explosives, plastics, paints, etc
• Bitumen, a petroleum product, meets the roads instead of coal tar.

Coal Gas

Coal gas is obtained to get a coke during coal processing. Coal gas is utilised for commercial purposes and used as a source of fuel.

Coal gas was used for street lighting for the first time in London in 1810 and New York around 1820. Presently, it acts as a source of heat rather than light.

Conclusion

Coal illuminates homes, buildings, and streets; provides household and industrial heat; and drives the majority of equipment and machinery used within homes, offices, and industries. Coal is the most plentiful source of power in the world, accounting for more than 36% of total global electricity production.