Abstract
In the coal-mining Ruhr-area, Upper Carboniferous rocks (ca. 4000 m) consist of interlayered sandstones, siltstones, mudstones and coals. They were deposited in a tropical, paralic environment where alternating fluvial sedimentation, occasional marine ingressions, and swamp growth resulted in an irregular cyclic succession. The total sedimentary package contains on an average 6 Vol.-% of organic matter. About 70 Vol.-% of the organic matter occurs in coal seams, the rest as dispersed organic matter in clastic rocks. The organic matter is autochthonous in the coals and allochthonous in associated sandstones and siltstones. It consists of about 70% vitrinite, 20% inertinite, and 10% liptinite. The overall maceral group composition is the same for coals and dispersed organic matter. This surprising similarity is caused by a nearly exclusive input of land-plant derived organic matter to swamps and fluvial systems and a similar degree of preservation. Highest average liptinite contents (% of total macerals) were found in unrooted mudstones, highest average inertinite contents in coarse-grained siltstones and highest average vitrinite percentages in sandstones.
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