Gondwana coals of Bhutan Himalaya - Occurrence, properties and petrographic characteristics

Abstract

A narrow belt of highly inclined coal-bearing Gondwana strata occurs in the extreme south-eastern part of Bhutan Himalaya. Recently, a systematic survey was undertaken along this coal belt and coals of three areas were analyzed in detail for the evaluation of their physico-chemical properties and petrographic characteristics. The entire region is in the midst of the Great Himalayan orogenic belt, and the whole stratigraphic sequence underwent several diastrophic movements in the geological past. The massive effects of these orogenies is more pronounced in the coal beds of Gondwana sequence, and due to severe crushing and tectonic shearing these coals became powdery and flaky in nature. Significantly, the coals retained their pre-deformational rank exhibiting typical high-volatile, low-rank, bituminous characters, with mild caking propensities. Also these coals are markedly low in sulphur, phosphorus, chlorine and carbonate content like that of Peninsular Gondwana coals. Petrographic studies of these Bhutan coals revealed a close similarity with the eastern Raniganj coals (Upper Permian) of Peninsular India. The tectonic shearing and crushing of the coals are exhibited by the frequent presence of microfolding, microfaulting, and other compressional structures. However, the coals of all the three areas have shown a consistently low order of reflectance values. This typical retention of pre-deformational low-rank bituminous character is a significant feature of Bhutan coals. It shows that massive orogenic movements were only able to physically crush these coals but could not generate the requisite thermal regime to raise the rank of these coals.