1. Formation of
coal

2. Made By
O Isaac Cilia Attard
O Sean Buttiġieġ
O Leo Aġius
O Calvin Ellul
O Zak Azzopardi

3. Formation
Coal formation begins when thin layers of
silt covers plant material that died and fell
into a swamp or bog. Each year new
layers of plant material falls into the
swamp until the weight of the overlying
sediments drives the water out forming
peat. As the heat and pressure increased
due to more overlying sediment peat turns
into true coal when the carbon content
reaches 25%.

4. What is peat?
Peat is partially carbonized
vegetable matter that formed in bogs
and swamps. Peat is the first stage in
the formation of coal. Peat is a
brown to black accumulation of
woody plant material. It has a high
moisture content of about 75%. Peat
burns freely when dried.

5. Lignite Coal
Coal formation continues as increasing
heat and pressure turns peat into lignite
brown or black coal. It is the first true
coal. Lignite coal is between 25-35%
carbon. It often displays the original
woody structure in the rocks. It burns
readily with a smoky flame and has a
strong odor. Generating plants use lignite
coal to produce electricity.

6. Bituminous coal
O Bituminous coal is black and has a glassy
luster with distinct bands and no evidence of a
wood structure. Bituminous coal has a carbon
content of 35-45 percent.
O Bituminous coal has a higher carbon content
between 44 to 86 percent pure carbon. This
coal does not crumble when exposed to air. It
is used to make coke for the steel industry and
supplies heat for industrial processes.

7. Anthracite coal
Anthracite coal is a metamorphic rock
with a glassy luster. It has a shell-like
fracture and is harder to ignite than
sedimentary coals. Anthracite coal has the
highest carbon content of all the coal. It is
between 86 and 98 percent pure carbon.
Anthracite coal is used for heating homes
because it burns with little smoke or odor.