Twenty-first Annual Meeting
Organic Matter Down Under

Sydney, Australia
26 September - 1 October, 2004

For many practical purposes coal can be regarded as consisting of organic matter (macerals) and a range of essentially non-combustible inorganic constituents (mineral matter). While the organic matter provides the source of energy in coal combustion, the reducing power in metallurgical applications and the host for coal-bed methane deposits, the mineral matter is typically associated with problems such as stickiness in coal handling, abrasion in coal grinding, and contamination or pollution from different preparation or utilisation processes. It may also be associated with reduction of permeability and inhibition of gas flow in coal-bed methane production. Mineral matter is nevertheless an inherent part of even the cleanest coal, and needs to be assessed along with the organic matter in coal characterisation studies.

The short course for the Sydney TSOP meeting will briefly outline the nature and origin of minerals and other inorganic constituents in coal, and provide an introduction to the range of techniques that may be used to complement traditional optical microscopy and chemical analysis in evaluating the abundance and constitution of this mineral matter. It will also provide a forum to discuss experience with using these techniques, and the application of mineral matter analysis to particular aspects of coal evaluation, mining, preparation, marketing, utilisation and environmental management.

Colin Ward and David French both have extensive experience in mineral matter studies of coals from around the world, ranging from brown coals to anthracites, and also evaluation of coal utilisation products such as coke and fly ash.

• Mineral formation and petrographic occurrence
• Inorganic elements in lower-rank coal components

• Low-temperature ashing techniques
• Hydrogen peroxide and other methods

• Instrumentation and operation
• Interpretation and mineral identification
• Detailed clay mineral studies
• Quantitative mineralogical analysis from XRD data
• Relation of mineral and ash chemistry
• Whole-coal XRD analysis

• Scanning electron microscopy
• Electron microprobe analysis
• CCSEM and QEM*Scan techniques
• Proton probe techniques
• Laser-ablation ICP-MS methods
• Other techniques (SIMS, XPS, synchrotron etc)

• Float-sink analysis (organic affinity)
• Associations with mineral abundance
• Chemical fractionation (selective leaching)
• Application of microbeam studies

• Mineralogical changes in coal utilisation
• Mineralogical analysis of slags and fly ashes

• Mineralogical variations within coal seams
• Regional variations in mineral matter
• Formation and significance of key mineral components

• UNSW research: http://www.bees.u nsw.edu.au/research/projects/mineral_matter.html

• CSIRO Energy: http://www.en ergy.csiro.au/science/researchservices/analysis_topics.htm

• Basic mineralogy: http://www.uni-wu erzburg.de/mineralogie/links/teach/teaching.html

• Siroquant XRD analysis system: http://www.sietronics.com.au/siroqnt /siroqnt.htm

See also: Ward, C.R., 2002. Analysis and significance of mineral matter in coal seams. International Journal of Coal Geology 50, 135-168.

Minerals in coal: pyrite infillings in fusinite (left) and calcite veins in vitrinite (right)

Oxygen-plasma low-temperature ashing for mineral isolation

X-ray diffraction analysis of mineral matter

Electron microprobe analysis