Definition
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers called coal beds
Blueschist is a metamorphic rock which is generally blue in color and is formed under conditions of high pressure and low temperature
Discoverer
John Peter Salley
Edgar Bailey
Etymology
From the Old English term col, which has meant mineral of fossilized carbon since the 13th century
From French schiste, Greek skhistos i.e. split
Class
Sedimentary Rocks
Metamorphic Rocks
Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock
Group
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Other Categories
Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Texture
Amorphous, Glassy
Foliated
Color
Black, Brown, Dark Brown, Grey, Light to Dark Grey
Blue, Bluish - Grey, Purple, Shades of Blue
Durability
Durable
Durable
Appearance
Veined or Pebbled
Dull and Banded
Interior Uses
Not Yet Used
Floor Tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Kitchens
Exterior Uses
Not Yet Used
Garden Decoration, Office Buildings
Other Architectural Uses
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Construction Industry
Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Steel Production
As Dimension Stone, Cobblestones, Rail Track Ballast, Roadstone
Medical Industry
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Antiquity Uses
Artifacts
Artifacts, Monuments, 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, Curling, Tombstones
Types
Peat, Lignite, Sub-Bituminous Coal, Bituminous Coal, Anthracite, Graphite
Not Available
Features
Helps in production of Heat and Electricity, Used as fossil fuel
Has High structural resistance against erosion and climate, Very fine grained rock
Archaeological Significance
Monuments
Not Yet Used
Used
Famous Monuments
Not Applicable
Data Not Available
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.
Blueschist forms due to the metamorphism of basalt and other rocks with similar composition at high pressures and low temperatures and approximately corresponding to a depth of 15 to 30 kilometers and 200 to 500 °C.
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, Chlorite, Epidote, Garnet, Glaucophane, Lawsonite, Muscovite or Illite, Quartz
Compound Content
Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Sulphur
Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, Potassium Oxide, MgO, MnO, Sodium Oxide, Phosphorus Pentoxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide
Types of Metamorphism
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism
Not Applicable
Types of Weathering
Not Applicable
Mechanical Weathering
Types of Erosion
Not Applicable
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion
Grain Size
Medium to Fine Coarse Grained
Fine to Medium Grained
Fracture
Conchoidal
Conchoidal
Streak
Black
White to Grey
Porosity
Less Porous
Highly Porous
Luster
Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic
Dull
Cleavage
Non-Existent
Slaty
Toughness
Not Available
1.5
Specific Gravity
1.1-1.4
3-3.2
Transparency
Opaque
Opaque
Density
1100-1400 g/cm3
2.8-2.9 g/cm3
Specific Heat Capacity
Not Available
Resistance
Heat Resistant
Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant
Deposits in Eastern Continents
Asia
Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Turkey, Vietnam
Japan, Turkey
Africa
Botswana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania
Egypt, Ethiopia, South Africa
Europe
Belgium, Bulgaria, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, The Czech Republic, Ukraine, United Kingdom
France, Greece, Iceland
Others
Not Yet Found
Not Yet Found
Deposits in Western Continents
North America
Canada, Mexico, USA
USA
South America
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela
Not Yet Found
Deposits in Oceania Continent
Australia
New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria
New Zealand
Coal vs Blueschist Characteristics
Though some rocks look identical, they have certain characteristics which distinguish them from others. Characteristics of rocks include texture, appearance, color, fracture, streak, hardness etc. Coal vs Blueschist characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Coal and Properties of Blueschist. Learn more about Coal vs Blueschist in the next section. The interior uses of Coal include Not yet used whereas the interior uses of Blueschist include Floor tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels and Kitchens. Due to some exceptional properties of Coal and Blueschist, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Coal in construction industry include Cement manufacture, For road aggregate, Making natural cement, Steel production and that of Blueschist include As dimension stone, Cobblestones, Rail track ballast, Roadstone.
More about Coal and Blueschist
Here you can know more about Coal and Blueschist. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Coal and Blueschist consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Coal includes 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 and mineral content of Blueschist includes Albite, Chlorite, Epidote, Garnet, Glaucophane, Lawsonite, Muscovite or Illite, Quartz. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Coal vs Blueschist, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Coal is available in black, brown, dark brown, grey, light to dark grey colors whereas, Blueschist is available in blue, bluish - grey, purple, shades of blue colors. Appearance of Coal is Veined or Pebbled and that of Blueschist is Dull and Banded. Properties of rock is another aspect for Coal vs Blueschist. The hardness of Coal is 1-1.5 and that of Blueschist is 3.5-4. The types of Coal are Peat, Lignite, Sub-Bituminous Coal, Bituminous Coal, Anthracite, Graphite whereas types of Blueschist are Not Available. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Coal is black while that of Blueschist is white to grey. The specific heat capacity of Coal is 1.32 kJ/Kg K and that of Blueschist is Not Available. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Coal is heat resistant whereas Blueschist is impact resistant, pressure resistant.