Tuesday, August 10, 2010

How Coal is formed?????

Coal is readily combustible black or brownish black sedimentary rock. Coal is called a fossil fuel because it was formed from the remains of vegetation that grew as long as 400 million years ago. It is often referred as "buried sunshine", because the plants which formed coal captured energy from the sun through photosynthesis to create the compounds that make up plant tissues. The most important element in the plant material is carbon, which gives coal must of its energy.

Most of our coal was formed  about 300 million years ago, when much of the earth was covered by steamy swamps. As plants and trees are died , Their remains sank to the bottom of the swampy areas, accumulating layer upon layer and eventually forming a soggy, dense material called Peat. Different types of coal are listed below:
  • Peat
  • Lignite
  • Sub-bituminous coal
  • Bituminous coal
  • Anthracite
  • Graphite
Some Advantages of Coal are:
  • Coal is one of the most abundant sources of energy, More than oil and natural gas.
  • Easily available
  • Coal is inexpensive when compared to other fossil fuel
  • Burning coal can produce useful by-products that can be used for other industries or products.
  • Using coal reduces the dependence on oil.
This is all about formation of coal , types and advantages of coal.

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