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The accurate prediction of coal structure is important to guide the exploration and development of coal reservoirs. Most prediction models are interpreted for a single sensitive coal seam, and the selection of sensitive parameters is correlated with the coal structure, but they ignore the interactions between different attributes. Part of it introduces the concept of the geological strength index (GSI) of coal rocks in order to achieve a multi-element macroscopic description and quantitative characterization of coal structure; however, the determination of coal structure involves some uncertainties among the properties of coal, such as lithology, gas content and tectonic fracture, due to their complex nature. Fuzzy inference systems provide a knowledge discovery process to handle uncertainty. The study shows that a type-2 fuzzy inference system (T2-FIS) with multi-attribute fusion is used to effectively fuse pre-stack and post-stack seismic inversion reservoir parameters and azimuthal seismic attribute parameters in order to produce more accurate prediction results for the Hengling block in the Shanxi area. The fuzzy set rules generated in this paper can provide a more reliable prediction of coal structure in the GSI system. The proposed system has been tested on various datasets and the results show that it is capable of providing reliable and high-quality coal structure predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the main fossil fuels globally, coal can be enriched with a variety of critical metal elements in specific geological conditions. This paper investigates the mineral compositions and concentrations of major and minor element oxides and trace elements in the No. 9 coal from the Xinyuan mine of the northern Qinshui coalfield, China, and discusses the modes of occurrence and enrichment mechanisms of critical metal elements such as Li, Ga, Th and REY. The mineral compositions of the No. 9 coal are primarily represented by clay minerals and quartz, with a small amount of calcite, siderite, anatase, etc. The major element oxides in the No. 9 coal are dominated by SiO2 and Al2O3. Compared with world hard coal, the No. 9 coal of the Xinyuan mine is rich in Li (CC = 8.00) and Th, slightly enriched with Pb, Sc, Ga, Y, La, Ce, Tb, Dy, Er, Yb and Hg, and depleted in Mn, Co, Ni, Rb, Cs and Tl. The critical metal elements such as Li, Ga, Th and REY that enriched No. 9 coal mainly occur in aluminum silicates. The genetic type of the critical metal elements in the No. 9 coal from the Xinyuan mine is source rock-controlled type. The critical metal minerals and solutions from the source area were transported to the study area by the action of water. Due to the change of swamp water conditions, the critical metal elements were combined with clay minerals and enriched the coal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To provide a comprehensive insight into the enrichment mechanism of gallium and indium in No. 9 coals, eighteen samples were collected from Anjialing mine, Ningwu Coalfield, Shanxi Province for coal petrological, mineralogical and geochemical analyses. The results suggested that Ga and In enrichment mainly hosted in the top horizons, with average concentration coefficients of 8.99 and 2.73 respectively, compared with the rest of horizons (2.46 for Ga and 1.69 for In). Source apportionment indicated that Ga and In were mainly derived from bauxite of Benxi Formation in Yinshan Oldland, while In could originate from felsic magmatic rocks in Yinshan Oldland as well. In addition, weak oxidation condition, medium to intensive weathering, transgression and input of terrestrial higher plants had positive effects on Ga and In enrichment. With the rapid expansion of emerging electronics manufacturing, Ga and In, of which potential risks on human health were neglected previously, were recently considered as hazardous elements. Therefore, this paper also discussed the potential pathways that these elements threatened human health. We suggested that potential risks on environment and human health caused by Ga and In enrichment in coals and coal-related products should be taken into account besides their economic value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is limited information available on the minerals and elements present in the Jurassic coals from Datong Coalfield. This paper investigates the geochemical and mineralogical characteristics of the Middle Jurassic coals from the Tongjialiang Mine using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF), inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), and scanning electron microscopy in combination with energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry (SEM-EDS). No.12 coal is a low-medium volatile bituminous coal and is characterized by low ash yield content, low moisture content, and ultra-low sulfur content. Compared with Chinese coals, the Tongjialiang coals have slightly higher average percentages of MgO and P2O5, and lower average percentages of the other major oxides, including SiO2, TiO2, Al2O3, Fe2O3, CaO, MnO, Na2O, and K2O. Compared with the World hard coals, Be, Cr, Co, Ni, Ge, Sn, Ta, and W are slightly enriched in the Tongjialiang coals. The concentrations of Li, F, Sc, V, Cu, Ga, Se, Sr, Zr, Nb, Hf, Pb, Th, and U are close to the average values of the world's hard coals. The minerals in No.12 coal mainly include quartz, kaolinite, siderite, and ankerite, along with smaller amounts of pyrite, illite, calcite, and rutile. The formation of syngenetic siderite in No.12 coal is related to the weathering of biotite in the gneiss of the Yinshan Upland. The modes of occurrence of ankerite indicate that the coals may be affected by the injection of low temperature hydrothermal fluids. It is noteworthy that a portion of epigenetic ankerite may be a product of metasomatism between syngenetic siderite and the epigenetic Fe-Mg-Ca rich hydrothermal fluids. The ratios of Al2O3/TiO2, REY (rare earth elements and yittrium) enrichment patterns, the modes of occurrence of siderite and ankerite, as well as the enriched lithophile and siderophile elements indicate that the No.12 coal may have originated from the Yinshan Upland and may also have been influenced by low temperature hydrothermal fluids that might have circulated in the coal basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]