Occurrence of Minerals in Coal and Its Geological Controlling Factors—Significance in Evaluation of Coal Washability

[Image: see text] The precombustion washing and washability of coal are increasingly gaining attention as a clean coal technology in China. In this study, the raw coal was collected from different coal seams in the south of Qinshui Coalfield, and flotation experiments were carried out in the laboratory after simple crushing. X-ray diffraction was used for qualitative analysis of the minerals in coal, and mineral morphology and disseminated particle size were measured with the help of an optical microscope. The samples were characterized to determine the original mineral content, combination type, occurrence characteristics, and dissemination type in coals of different lithotypes to establish a relationship with the coal-forming environment and to evaluate coal selectivity from a geological perspective. The results were obtained from the float–sink experiment by which the coal washability of different lithotypes is evaluated, combined with the information resulting from investigating the change law of the mineral occurrence and dissemination characteristics of the raw coal and the clean coal before and after the flotation experiment. The content of minerals with the particle size larger than 200 μm accounts for 35–50% of the easy-to-wash coal. The particles were mostly concentrated in the 50–100 μm size range in moderate difficulty washability coal, and the mineral occurrence forms are diverse. The disseminated particle size distribution of 10–20 μm in the refractory washability coal is between 35 and 45%, and the massive and fracture filling minerals are rarely found in the coal. The proportion of minerals smaller than 2 μm in the extremely difficult washability coal is more than 60%, and cell filling, dispersed, and banding forms are plentiful in this type of coal. The removal rates of ash and sulfur obtained through elution match well with the mineral form and distribution characteristics. The reason for the difference was the influence of the coal-forming environment on the occurrence of minerals in coal, which led to the removal of minerals in the coal washing procedure. The process is controlled by the occurrence and dissemination characteristics of minerals.