While the question asks how coal is made from coal, the provided information explains how coal is formed from ancient plant matter. Coal is not created from existing coal but through a process that transforms buried organic material over millions of years.
Based on the reference provided, the formation of coal is a geological process involving the transformation of plant remains.
The Process of Coal Formation
Coal formation begins with the accumulation of dead plant material, typically in swampy environments where the decay process is slow due to lack of oxygen. Over vast stretches of time, these layers of organic matter are buried deeper and deeper.
The key steps in this transformation, according to the reference, are:
- Accumulation of Ancient Plants: Coal contains the energy stored by plants that lived hundreds of millions of years ago in swampy forests.
- Burial: Layers of dirt and rock covered the plants over millions of years. This burial leads to increased pressure and temperature.
- Transformation: The resulting pressure and heat turned the plants into the substance we call coal. This transformation occurs over millions of years, changing the organic matter through physical and chemical processes.
Let's look at the contributing factors in a simplified table:
| Factor | Description | Role in Coal Formation |
|---|---|---|
| Ancient Plants | Organic matter from swampy forests. | The primary source material. |
| Time | Hundreds of millions of years. | Required for burial and transformation. |
| Burial | Layers of dirt and rock covering plant matter. | Creates pressure and depth. |
| Pressure | From overlying layers of sediment and rock. | Compacts plant matter, removes water. |
| Heat | From deep burial and the Earth's geothermal gradient. | Causes chemical changes (coalification). |
Through this lengthy process involving burial, pressure, and heat applied to ancient plant matter, coal is formed. It is a process of transforming organic remains into a solid, carbon-rich material, not a process of creating more coal from existing coal.
