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How Coal Forms How Coal Forms
Cutting Peat Cutting Peat

How Coal Forms

How Coal Forms
The coal we find today formed from generations of plants that died in ancient tropical swamps and accumulated on the swamp bottoms. The plant material first formed a compact organic material called peat. As layers of sediment gradually accumulated over the peat, the pressure and heat exerted by the thickening layers gradually drove out the moisture and increased the carbon content of the peat, forming coal.
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Fossil Fuels; Carbon; Coal; Fuels, Synthetic
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