Under normal temperature and pressure on the surface of the earth, plant remains accumulated in stagnant water bodies undergo peatification or saponification to transform into peat or sapropel; After being buried, peat or sapropel sinks to deep underground due to the decline of the basin basement, and is transformed into lignite through diagenesis; As the temperature and pressure gradually increase, it undergoes metamorphism and transforms into bituminous coal to anthracite. Peatization refers to the process in which higher plant remains accumulate in swamps and undergo biochemical changes to transform into peat. Saponification refers to the process of lower level biological remains being transformed into sapropel through biochemical changes in swamps. Sapropel is a muddy substance rich in water and asphalt. The glacial process may contribute to the collection and preservation of coal-forming plant remains
The Age of Coal Formation
Throughout the entire geological era, there are three major coal-forming periods worldwide: (1) the Carboniferous and Permian periods of the Paleozoic, where coal forming plants are mainly spore plants. The main coal types are bituminous coal and anthracite
(2) During the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods of the Mesozoic, the coal forming plants were mainly gymnosperms. The main coal types are brown coal and bituminous coal
(3) In the Tertiary period of the Cenozoic era, coal forming plants were mainly angiosperms. The main coal type is lignite, followed by peat, and there are also some young bituminous coal
The formation of coal mine thinness
The thickness of coal seams in a coal mine is related to the rate of crustal decline and the amount of plant remains accumulated in the area. The speed of crustal decline is fast, and if plant remains accumulate thick, the coal seam of this coal mine will be thick. Conversely, if the speed of crustal decline is slow, and plant remains accumulate thin, the coal seam of this coal mine will be thin
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