Editing Inertinite

'''Inertinites''' are a group of partially oxidized organic (mainly plant) materials or [[fossil]]ized [[charcoal|charcoals]], all sharing the characteristic that they typically are inert (i.e., not altered) when heated in the absence of oxygen. Inertinite is a common [[maceral]] in most types of [[coal]]. The main inertinite submacerals are [[fusinite]], semifusinite, micrinite, macrinite, and [[funginite]], with semifusinite being the most common. From the perspective of coal combustion, inertinite can be burned to yield heat but does not yield significant volatile fractions during [[coking]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://mccoy.lib.siu.edu/projects/crelling2/atlas/macerals/mactut.html |title=Coal Macerals Tutorial |accessdate=2011-04-01 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720044325/http://mccoy.lib.siu.edu/projects/crelling2/atlas/macerals/mactut.html |archivedate=2011-07-20 }}</ref><ref name="Ward">{{cite book |last1=Ward |first1=Colin |title=Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology (Third Edition) |date=2003 |publisher=Academic Press |isbn=9780122274107 |pages=45-77 |url=https://doi.org/10.1016/B0-12-227410-5/00111-3 |access-date=23 November 2023 |chapter=Coal Geology}}</ref>

Inertinite is also found as tiny flakes within [[sedimentary rock]]s. The presence of inertinite in this context is significant in the geological record, as it signifies that [[wildfire]]s may have occurred at the time that the host [[sediment]] was deposited.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Scott |first=Andrew C. |last2=Glasspool |first2=Ian J. |date=2007-04-02 |title=Observations and experiments on the origin and formation of inertinite group macerals |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166516206000978 |journal=International Journal of Coal Geology |series=TSOP 2004 |volume=70 |issue=1 |pages=53–66 |doi=10.1016/j.coal.2006.02.009 |issn=0166-5162|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rimmer |first1=Susan |last2=Hawkins |first2=Sarah |last3=Scott |first3=Andrew |last4=Cressler |first4=Walter |title=The rise of fire: Fossil charcoal in late Devonian marine shales as an indicator of expanding terrestrial ecosystems, fire, and atmospheric change |journal=American Journal of Science |date=1 October 2015 |volume=315 |issue=8 |url=https://doi.org/10.2475/08.2015.01 |access-date=23 November 2023}}</ref> It can also be an indication of oxidation due to atmospheric exposure or fungal decomposition during deposition.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Flores |first1=Romeo |title=Coal and Coalbed Gas |date=2014 |publisher=Elsevier |isbn=9780123969729 |pages=167-233 |url=https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-396972-9.00004-5 |access-date=23 November 2023 |chapter=Chapter 4 - Coalification, Gasification, and Gas Storage}}</ref>

The optical properties of semifusinite are very similar to those of [[vitrinite]]. They differ in that semifusinite displays a folded texture compared to vitrinite, which generally maintains its composed structure. Inertinites also display higher [[reflectance]] than vitrinite, except when approaching an [[anthracite|anthracitic]] or [[graphite]] state.<ref name="Ward" />

[[Biochar]], produced by [[pyrolysis]] at temperatures over 600°C, resembles inertinite.<ref>{{Cite report |url=https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU23/EGU23-10913.html |title=Carbon permanence of biochar; a lesson learned from the geologically preserved charcoal in carbonaceous rocks |last=Sanei |first=Hamed |last2=Petersen |first2=Henrik Ingermann |date=2023-02-22 |publisher=Copernicus Meetings |issue=EGU23-10913 |language=en}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Sedimentary rocks]]


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