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Oil shale
Oil shale

Coal
Coal



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Oil shale vs 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
Sedimentary Rocks
1.4.1 Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
1.5 Family
1.5.1 Group
Not Applicable
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
Less
2.4 Durability
Durable
Durable
2.4.1 Water Resistant
2.4.2 Scratch Resistant
2.4.3 Stain Resistant
2.4.4 Wind Resistant
2.4.5 Acid Resistant
2.5 Appearance
Muddy
Veined or Pebbled
3 Uses
3.1 Architecture
3.1.1 Interior Uses
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
3.1.2 Exterior Uses
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
3.1.3 Other Architectural Uses
Not Yet Used
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
Not Yet Used
3.3 Antiquity Uses
Artifacts
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
Not Yet Used
4.3.2 Famous Monuments
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
4.3.3 Sculpture
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
4.3.4 Famous Sculptures
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
4.3.5 Pictographs
Not Used
Not Used
4.3.6 Petroglyphs
Not Used
Not Used
4.3.7 Figurines
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
4.4 Fossils
Present
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
5.3.2 Types of Metamorphism
Not Applicable
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism
5.3.3 Weathering
1.1.1 Types of Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
Not Applicable
1.1.3 Erosion
1.1.4 Types of Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Sea Erosion, Water Erosion
Not Applicable
2 Properties
2.1 Physical Properties
2.1.1 Hardness
2-31-1.5
Slate
1 7
2.1.2 Grain Size
Very fine-grained
Medium to Fine Coarse Grained
2.1.3 Fracture
Not Available
Conchoidal
2.1.4 Streak
White
Black
2.1.5 Porosity
Highly Porous
Less Porous
2.1.6 Luster
Dull
Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic
2.1.7 Compressive Strength
NANA
Obsidian
0.15 450
2.1.14 Cleavage
Slaty
Non-Existent
2.1.15 Toughness
2.6
Not Available
2.1.16 Specific Gravity
2.2-2.81.1-1.4
Granite
0 8.4
2.1.20 Transparency
Opaque
Opaque
2.1.21 Density
2.4-2.8 g/cm31100-1400 g/cm3
Granite
0 1400
2.2 Thermal Properties
2.2.1 Specific Heat Capacity
0.39 kJ/Kg K1.32 kJ/Kg K
Granulite
0.14 3.2
2.3.2 Resistance
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant
Heat Resistant
3 Reserves
3.1 Deposits in Eastern Continents
3.1.1 Asia
Bangladesh, China, India, Israel, Jordan, Russia, Syria, Thailand, Turkey
Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Turkey, Vietnam
3.1.2 Africa
Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Tanzania
Botswana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania
3.1.3 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
3.1.4 Others
Greenland, Not Yet Found
Not Yet Found
3.2 Deposits in Western Continents
3.2.1 North America
Canada, USA
Canada, Mexico, USA
3.2.2 South America
Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela
3.3 Deposits in Oceania Continent
3.3.1 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.

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.