The character of Permian coking and non-coking coal in the Sohagpur Coal Field, Madhya Pradesh, India

WARWICK, PETER D., MILICI, ROBERT C., U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA 22092; LANDIS, EDWIN R., U.S. Geological Survey, Denver, CO 80225; MUKHOPADHYAY, ABHIJIT, and ADHIKARI, S., Geological Survey of India, Calcutta, 700 064, India

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Geological Survey of India (GSI), is engaged in a study of the coking coal deposits of the Barakar and Raniganj Formations (Lower Permian), in the Sohagpur basin (roughly 80X40 km), Madhya Pradesh, India. GSI has found that the major occurrences of coking coal in the basin are on the northern, down-thrown side of the regional syn-sedimentary Bamhani-Chilpa fault which has as much as 400 m of offset. Coking characteristics of these coal beds may be related to the relatively high heat flow associated with abundant diabase intrusives (Late Cretaceous - Paleocene) found throughout the basin,and/or the greater depth of burial of the coal beds north of the fault.
We have collected more than 100 coal and rock samples from drill core, surface exposures, and open-cast mines at various locations across the basin. Preliminary results from proximate and ultimate analyses, and reflectance and petrographic analyses indicate that Ro (max) ranges from 0.46 to 2.3 and vitrinite contents range from 7.3 to 43.6%. Inertinite contents range from 8 to 75%, and ash yields range from 12 to 50% (ave. 27%, as-received basis). In places, dikes and sills have increased the rank of the coal. On a regional basis, thermal indicators suggest that the Bamhani-Chilpa fault served as a conduit for heat that localized the coking coal on the downthrown side of the fault.

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