Definition
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers called coal beds
Phyllite is a fine-grained metamorphic rock with a well-developed laminar structure, and is intermediate between slate and schist rocks
Discoverer
John Peter Salley
Unknown
Etymology
From the Old English term col, which has meant mineral of fossilized carbon since the 13th century
From Greek phullon leaf + -ite1
Class
Sedimentary Rocks
Metamorphic Rocks
Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Group
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Other Categories
Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Texture
Amorphous, Glassy
Phyllitic Sheen, Slaty
Color
Black, Brown, Dark Brown, Grey, Light to Dark Grey
Black to Grey, Light Greenish Grey
Durability
Durable
Durable
Appearance
Veined or Pebbled
Crinkled or Wavy
Interior Uses
Not Yet Used
Decorative Aggregates, Floor Tiles, Homes, Interior Decoration
Exterior Uses
Not Yet Used
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration
Other Architectural Uses
Not Yet Used
Curbing
Construction Industry
Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Steel Production
As Dimension Stone, Building houses or walls, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar, Roadstone
Medical Industry
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Antiquity Uses
Artifacts
Artifacts, Sculpture
Commercial Uses
Alumina Refineries, Electricity Generation, Liquid Fuel, Manufacture of Soap, Solvents, Dyes, Plastics and Fibres, Paper Industry
Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Creating Artwork, Writing Slates
Types
Peat, Lignite, Sub-Bituminous Coal, Bituminous Coal, Anthracite, Graphite
Not Available
Features
Helps in production of Heat and Electricity, Used as fossil fuel
Easily splits into thin plates, Is one of the oldest rock, Surfaces are often shiny
Archaeological Significance
Monuments
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Famous Monuments
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Sculpture
Not Yet Used
Used
Famous Sculptures
Not Applicable
Data Not Available
Pictographs
Not Used
Used
Petroglyphs
Not Used
Used
Figurines
Not Yet Used
Used
Formation
Coal forms from the accumulation of plant debris in a swamp environment which is buried by sediments such as mud or sand and then compacted to form coal.
Phyllite is a metamorphic rock which is formed by regional metamorphism of argillaceous sediments since their cleavage arose due to deviatoric stress.
Mineral Content
Analcime, Apatite, Barite, Calcite, Chalcopyrite, Chlorite, Chromite, Clausthalite, Clay Minerals, Crandallite Group, Dolomite, Feldspar, Galena, Gypsum, Marcasite, Muscovite or Illite, Pyrite, Quartz, Siderite, Sphalerite, Zircon
Albite, Alusite, Amphibole, Apatite, Biotite, Chlorite, Epidote, Feldspar, Garnet, Graphite, Hornblade, Kyanite, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Porphyroblasts, Quartz, Sillimanite, Staurolite, Talc, Zircon
Compound Content
Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Sulphur
CaO, Carbon Dioxide, MgO
Types of Metamorphism
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism
Not Applicable
Types of Weathering
Not Applicable
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
Types of Erosion
Not Applicable
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion
Grain Size
Medium to Fine Coarse Grained
Medium to Fine Coarse Grained
Fracture
Conchoidal
Conchoidal
Porosity
Less Porous
Highly Porous
Luster
Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic
Phyllitic
Cleavage
Non-Existent
Crenulation and Pervasive
Toughness
Not Available
1.2
Specific Gravity
1.1-1.4
2.72-2.73
Transparency
Opaque
Opaque
Density
1100-1400 g/cm3
2.18-3.3 g/cm3
Specific Heat Capacity
Not Available
Resistance
Heat Resistant
Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Water Resistant
Deposits in Eastern Continents
Asia
Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Turkey, Vietnam
Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Russia, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam
Africa
Botswana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania
Egypt, Ethiopia, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa
Europe
Belgium, Bulgaria, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, The Czech Republic, Ukraine, United Kingdom
Austria, England, France, Georgia, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland
Others
Not Yet Found
Not Yet Found
Deposits in Western Continents
North America
Canada, Mexico, USA
Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico, Panama, USA
South America
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela
Brazil, Colombia, Guyana
Deposits in Oceania Continent
Australia
New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria
New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland