attrital coal

n

the ground mass or matrix of banded coal in which vitrain and, commonly, fusain layers as well, are embedded or enclosed.

DISCUSSION — Layers in banded coal, often referred to as bands, are commonly 1 to 30 mm thick. Attrital coal in banded coal is highly varied in composition and appearance, its luster varying from a brilliance nearly equal to that of the associated vitrain to nearly as dull as fusain; it exhibits striated, granulose, or rough texture. In a few cases, relatively thick layers of such attrital coal are found that contain no interbedded vitrain. Nonbanded coal also is attrital coal but is not usually referred to as such. In contrast to the coarser and more variable texture of attrital coal in banded coal, nonbanded coal is notably uniform and fine in texture, being derived from size-sorted plant debris. The luster of attrital coal, which ranges from bright (but less than that of associated vitrain) to dull, is commonly used to describe and characterize attrital coal. As an alternative, some petrographers subdivide attrital coal into clarain and durain. Clarain has bright luster and silky texture, being finely striated parallel to the coal bedding. Durain has dull luster and sometimes is referred to as dull coal. Similarly, coal consisting of vitrain or clarain or a mixture of the two is sometimes referred to as bright coal.