Oil shale

Coal

Oil shale vs Coal

Oil shale

Coal

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1 Definition

1.1 Definition

Oil Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock from which oil is extracted

Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers called coal beds

1.2 History

1.2.1 Origin

Unknown

USA

1.2.2 Discoverer

Unknown

John Peter Salley

1.3 Etymology

From Old English scealu in its base sense of thing that divides or separate

From the Old English term col, which has meant mineral of fossilized carbon since the 13th century

1.4 Class

Sedimentary Rocks

1.4.1 Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Soft Rock

1.5 Family

1.5.1 Group

Not Applicable

1.6 Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

2 Texture

2.1 Texture

Splintery

Amorphous, Glassy

2.2 Color

Black, Brown, Buff, Green, Grey, Red, Yellow

Black, Brown, Dark Brown, Grey, Light to Dark Grey

2.3 Maintenance

Less

2.4 Durability

Durable

2.4.1 Water Resistant

✔ ✘

59% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

59% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.2 Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

62% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

62% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.3 Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

43% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

43% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.4 Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

38% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

38% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.5 Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

22% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

22% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

2.5 Appearance

Muddy

Veined or Pebbled

3 Uses

3.1 Architecture

3.1.1 Interior Uses

Not Yet Used

3.1.2 Exterior Uses

Not Yet Used

3.1.3 Other Architectural Uses

Not Yet Used

3.2 Industry

3.2.1 Construction Industry

Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Serves as an Oil and Gas Reservoir rock

Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Steel Production

3.2.2 Medical Industry

Not Yet Used

3.3 Antiquity Uses

Artifacts

3.4 Other Uses

3.4.1 Commercial Uses

An Oil and Gas Reservoir

Alumina Refineries, Electricity Generation, Liquid Fuel, Manufacture of Soap, Solvents, Dyes, Plastics and Fibres, Paper Industry

4 Types

4.1 Types

Carbonate-rich Shale, Siliceous Shale and Cannel Shale

Peat, Lignite, Sub-Bituminous Coal, Bituminous Coal, Anthracite, Graphite

4.2 Features

Easily splits into thin plates, Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock, Very fine grained rock

Helps in production of Heat and Electricity, Used as fossil fuel

4.3 Archaeological Significance

4.3.1 Monuments

Not Yet Used

4.3.2 Famous Monuments

Not Applicable

4.3.3 Sculpture

Not Yet Used

4.3.4 Famous Sculptures

Not Applicable

4.3.5 Pictographs

Not Used

4.3.6 Petroglyphs

Not Used

4.3.7 Figurines

Not Yet Used

4.4 Fossils

Present

5 Formation

5.1 Formation

Oil Shale forms on the beds of seas and lakes and its formation starts with the organic debris settling and accumulating at the bottom of a lake or sea which are then transformed into rock with the help of high temperature and pressure.

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.

5.2 Composition

5.2.1 Mineral Content

Albite, Biotite, Calcite, Chert, Chlorite, Dolomite, Hematite, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Pyrite, Quartz, Silica, Sulfides

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

5.2.2 Compound Content

Ca, Fe, Mg, Silicon Dioxide, Sodium

Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Sulphur

5.3 Transformation

5.3.1 Metamorphism

✔ ✘

19% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

19% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.2 Types of Metamorphism

Not Applicable

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

5.3.3 Weathering

✔ ✘

78% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

78% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.4 Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Not Applicable

5.3.5 Erosion

✔ ✘

86% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

86% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.6 Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Sea Erosion, Water Erosion

Not Applicable

6 Properties

6.1 Physical Properties

6.1.1 Hardness

2-3

1-1.5

6.1.2 Grain Size

Very fine-grained

Medium to Fine Coarse Grained

6.1.3 Fracture

Not Available

Conchoidal

6.1.4 Streak

White

Black

6.1.5 Porosity

Highly Porous

Less Porous

6.1.6 Luster

Dull

Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic

6.1.7 Compressive Strength

Flint

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▶

▼

Not Available

Rank: N/A (Overall)▶

Not Available

Rank: N/A (Overall)▶

▲

Obsidian

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▶

175 (Granite)

◀ ▶ ADD ⊕

6.1.8 Cleavage

Slaty

Non-Existent

6.1.9 Toughness

2.6

Not Available

6.1.10 Specific Gravity

2.2-2.8

1.1-1.4

6.1.11 Transparency

Opaque

6.1.12 Density

2.4-2.8 g/cm³

1100-1400 g/cm³

6.2 Thermal Properties

6.2.1 Specific Heat Capacity

Banded iron for..

⊕

▶

▼

0.39 kJ/Kg K

Rank: 23 (Overall)▶

1.32 kJ/Kg K

Rank: 4 (Overall)▶

▲

Granulite

⊕

▶

1.09 (Travertine)

◀ ▶ ADD ⊕

6.2.2 Resistance

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant

Heat Resistant

7 Reserves

7.1 Deposits in Eastern Continents

7.1.1 Asia

Bangladesh, China, India, Israel, Jordan, Russia, Syria, Thailand, Turkey

Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Turkey, Vietnam

7.1.2 Africa

Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Tanzania

Botswana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania

7.1.3 Europe

Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Romania, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland

Belgium, Bulgaria, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, The Czech Republic, Ukraine, United Kingdom

7.1.4 Others

Greenland, Not Yet Found

Not Yet Found

7.2 Deposits in Western Continents

7.2.1 North America

Canada, USA

Canada, Mexico, USA

7.2.2 South America

Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela

Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela

7.3 Deposits in Oceania Continent

7.3.1 Australia

New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia

New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria

Oil shale vs Coal Information

Earth’s outer layer is covered by rocks and these rocks have different physical and chemical properties. As two rocks are not same, it’s fun to compare them. You can also know more about Oil shale and Coal Reserves. Oil Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock from which oil is extracted. Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers called coal beds. These rocks are composed of many distinct minerals. The process of formation of rocks is different for various rocks. Rocks are quarried from many years for various purposes. You can check out Oil shale vs Coal information and Oil shale vs Coal characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Oil shale vs Coal 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. Oil shale vs Coal characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Oil shale and Properties of Coal. Learn more about Oil shale vs Coal in the next section. The interior uses of Oil shale include Not yet used whereas the interior uses of Coal include Not yet used. Due to some exceptional properties of Oil shale and Coal, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Oil shale in construction industry include Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate, Serves as an oil and gas reservoir rock and that of Coal include Cement manufacture, For road aggregate, Making natural cement, Steel production.

More about Oil shale and Coal

Here you can know more about Oil shale and Coal. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Oil shale and Coal consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Oil shale includes Albite, Biotite, Calcite, Chert, Chlorite, Dolomite, Hematite, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Pyrite, Quartz, Silica, Sulfides and 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. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Oil shale vs Coal, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Oil shale is available in black, brown, buff, green, grey, red, yellow colors whereas, Coal is available in black, brown, dark brown, grey, light to dark grey colors. Appearance of Oil shale is Muddy and that of Coal is Veined or Pebbled. Properties of rock is another aspect for Oil shale vs Coal. The hardness of Oil shale is 2-3 and that of Coal is 1-1.5. The types of Oil shale are Carbonate-rich Shale, Siliceous Shale and Cannel Shale whereas types of Coal are Peat, Lignite, Sub-Bituminous Coal, Bituminous Coal, Anthracite, Graphite. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Oil shale is white while that of Coal is black. The specific heat capacity of Oil shale is 0.39 kJ/Kg K and that of Coal is 1.32 kJ/Kg K. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Oil shale is heat resistant, impact resistant whereas Coal is heat resistant.