Tag: mineral coal

Coal tar contains a large number of aromatic hydrocarbons which in turn find applications in dyes, drugs, explosives, plastics, etc.

Carbonisation of coal is done to meet the demand coke (required by steel industry as fuel) and coal tar (a rich source of aromatic compounds).

Cresols present in coal tar are acidic in nature. These are weak acids like phenols.

Anthracene present in coal tar is neutral in nature.
Other neutral hydrocarbons include benzene, toluene and naphthalene.

Most coal sent from mine to market travels either by railroad or by barge.  Railroads handle the most coal, which is the largest single commodity carried by the rail industry.  Barges operating along inland waterways and intercoastal and lake routes handle about 20 percent of domestic coal movements.  Railroads and barges combined move nearly two-thirds of all U.S. coal shipments.

Coal has four major markets

Coal is obtained from mines.

• Microfossils are fossils that are generally between 0.001 mm and 1mm size, the study of which requires the use of electron microscopy.
  
• Coal, petroleum and natural gas are called fossil fuels because these were formed from the dead remains of living organisms (fossils).
  
• Paleobotany is the study of fossil plants. 
• Hence the possibility of occurrence of coal in an area,s determined by the study of microfossils (paleobotany).
• So, the correct answer is 'Microfossils'.

The slow process of conversion of dead vegetation into coal is called Carbonization.