Petrographical and Chemical Properties of Mus Coals

One of the most important natural energy resources of our country stands to be as coal; our reserve with the newly discovered bed exceeds more than 14 billion tons. Although the higher quality coals are located at the western and inner part of Anatolia, there are some coal beds in the eastern Anatolia as well. The coals near Muş city are one of them. The coals are Tertiary (Pliocene) aged coals. Petrographical and chemical properties, as moisture, volatile matter, fixed carbon, ash content of the coals were determined in this study. The coals are of many thin layers and of a total thickness varying between 0.9-3.6 meters. The original coals contain of an average lower calorific value about 1200 Kcal/kg. Their ash content changes between 17-30 %, moisture with 30% average. The coals exhibit higher moisture content which is thought to be derived from high ground water level and of surfical water inputs. The dominant maceral of the coals is huminite, changing between 28 to 61 % amount. Gelinite is the most common huminites. Liptinite content changes between 2-5% and inertinite, between 2-11 %. The huminite reflectance (Ro) were measured as changing between 0.10 - 0.29 % (standard deviation as 0.01 - 0.02%) and corresponds to lignite rank. The low reflectance values are probably resulted from their shallow burials and their being remote to tectonic activities in the region. The coals comprise of 3-6% pyrite and 14-62 clay and other inorganic materials. Muş coals were classified as poor quality lignite, based on organic petrography, coal quality data and their low maturity index. Detail coal petrographical analysis seems to indicate depositional environment of the coals to be as limnic swamps. Total reserve of the coals is about 6.2 million metric tons.