Definition
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers called coal beds
Flint is a hard type of sedimentary rock that produces a small piece of burning material when hit by steel
Discoverer
John Peter Salley
Unknown
Etymology
From the Old English term col, which has meant mineral of fossilized carbon since the 13th century
From Old English flint - a type of rock mainly known for high hardness and for giving off sparks when struck
Class
Sedimentary Rocks
Sedimentary Rocks
Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Durable Rock, Hard Rock
Group
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Other Categories
Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Texture
Amorphous, Glassy
Banded, Rough
Color
Black, Brown, Dark Brown, Grey, Light to Dark Grey
Black, Brown, Green, Grey, Red, White
Durability
Durable
Durable
Appearance
Veined or Pebbled
Glassy or Pearly
Interior Uses
Not Yet Used
Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration
Exterior Uses
Not Yet Used
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings, Paving Stone
Other Architectural Uses
Not Yet Used
Curbing
Construction Industry
Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Steel Production
Arrowheads, Cutting Tool, Spear Points
Medical Industry
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Antiquity Uses
Artifacts
Artifacts
Commercial Uses
Alumina Refineries, Electricity Generation, Liquid Fuel, Manufacture of Soap, Solvents, Dyes, Plastics and Fibres, Paper Industry
Creating Artwork, Gemstone, In fire-starting tools, Manufacture of tools, Metallurgical Flux, Jewelry, To ignite fire, Used in flintlock firearms
Types
Peat, Lignite, Sub-Bituminous Coal, Bituminous Coal, Anthracite, Graphite
Not Available
Features
Helps in production of Heat and Electricity, Used as fossil fuel
Clasts are smooth to touch, Easily splits into thin plates, Has High structural resistance against erosion and climate
Archaeological Significance
Monuments
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Famous Monuments
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Sculpture
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Famous Sculptures
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Pictographs
Not Used
Not Used
Petroglyphs
Not Used
Not Used
Figurines
Not Yet Used
Not Yet 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.
Flint is formed by the decomposition and compaction of various organisms such as sponges and diatoms under the water.
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
Silicon
Compound Content
Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Sulphur
Silicon Dioxide
Types of Metamorphism
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism
Not Applicable
Types of Weathering
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Types of Erosion
Not Applicable
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion
Grain Size
Medium to Fine Coarse Grained
Very fine-grained
Fracture
Conchoidal
Conchoidal
Porosity
Less Porous
Highly Porous
Luster
Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic
Vitreous
Compressive Strength
Not Available
Cleavage
Non-Existent
Non-Existent
Toughness
Not Available
1.5
Specific Gravity
1.1-1.4
2.5-2.8
Transparency
Opaque
Translucent to Opaque
Density
1100-1400 g/cm3
2.7-2.71 g/cm3
Resistance
Heat Resistant
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant
Deposits in Eastern Continents
Asia
Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Turkey, Vietnam
Azerbaijan, China, Russia
Africa
Botswana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania
Not Yet Found
Europe
Belgium, Bulgaria, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, The Czech Republic, Ukraine, United Kingdom
Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom
Others
Not Yet Found
Not Yet Found
Deposits in Western Continents
North America
Canada, Mexico, USA
USA
South America
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela
Bolivia
Deposits in Oceania Continent
Australia
New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria
New Zealand, South Australia
Coal vs Flint 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 Flint characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Coal and Properties of Flint. Learn more about Coal vs Flint in the next section. The interior uses of Coal include Not yet used whereas the interior uses of Flint include Decorative aggregates, Homes and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Coal and Flint, 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 Flint include Arrowheads, Cutting tool, Spear points.
More about Coal and Flint
Here you can know more about Coal and Flint. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Coal and Flint 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 Flint includes Silicon. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Coal vs Flint, 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, Flint is available in black, brown, green, grey, red, white colors. Appearance of Coal is Veined or Pebbled and that of Flint is Glassy or Pearly. Properties of rock is another aspect for Coal vs Flint. The hardness of Coal is 1-1.5 and that of Flint is 7. The types of Coal are Peat, Lignite, Sub-Bituminous Coal, Bituminous Coal, Anthracite, Graphite whereas types of Flint 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 Flint is white. The specific heat capacity of Coal is 1.32 kJ/Kg K and that of Flint is 0.74 kJ/Kg K. 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 Flint is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant.