# Inertinite

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'''Inertinites''' are a group of partially oxidized organic (mainly plant) materials or [fossil](/source/fossil)ized [charcoals](/source/charcoal), 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](/source/maceral) in most types of [coal](/source/coal). The main inertinite submacerals are [fusinite](/source/fusinite), semifusinite, micrinite, macrinite, and [funginite](/source/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](/source/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 |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 |edition=Third |doi=10.1016/B0-12-227410-5/00111-3 }}</ref>

Inertinite is also found as tiny flakes within [sedimentary rock](/source/sedimentary_rock)s. The presence of inertinite in this context is significant in the geological record, as it signifies that [wildfire](/source/wildfire)s may have occurred at the time that the host [sediment](/source/sediment) was deposited.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Scott |first1=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 |bibcode=2007IJCG...70...53S |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 |pages=713–733 |doi=10.2475/08.2015.01 |bibcode=2015AmJS..315..713R |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 |doi=10.1016/B978-0-12-396972-9.00004-5 }}</ref>

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

[Biochar](/source/Biochar), produced by [pyrolysis](/source/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 |last1=Sanei |first1=Hamed |last2=Petersen |first2=Henrik Ingermann |date=2023-02-22 |publisher=Copernicus Meetings |issue=EGU23-10913 |language=en}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

Category:Sedimentary rocks

{{Sedimentary-rock-stub}}

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