APES Fossil Fuels - Coal

Fossil Fuel

Non-renewable sources of energy that are made from the remains of living organisms that were changed/altered due to geologic forces

Non-renewable Resources

A substance which is used faster than it can be replaced.

Strip Mining

Process by which the strata above coal is removed so as to allow for the extraction of the coal underground.

Mountain-top Removal

Process of coal extraction where mountain surfaces are opened up with explosives to give access to the coal underneath.

Anthracite

Densest, hardest form of coal with the highest amount of stored BTUs of energy.

Bituminous

Moderately dense and hard coal with a moderate amount of stored BTUs of energy.

Lignite

Least dense, crumbly, dirt-like form of coal with the least amount of stored BTUs of energy.

Overburden

Rock material removed from the ground’s surface during coal extraction.

Tailings

Remaining waste materials which come from the processing of raw coal.

Acid mine drainage

Production of a low pH substance resulting from water reacting with hydrogen sulfide from coal mine tailings.

Mine Reclamation

After extraction, the process of refilling the extraction site in with the removed overburden.

Black Lung Disease

Sickness common in miners resulting from breathing in coal dust.

Coal Bed Methane

Methane gas trapped in coal seams, stored by absorption of the coal.