Colloidal structure of Victorian brown coals. 2. Rod-shaped particles in brown coal

Evidence is presented that brown coal contains rod-shaped particles of approximately one micrometre in diameter, and from 2 to 8 micrometres in length. Up to 42% of the coal can be obtained as rods by using alkali to separate them from larger lumps. Rods in alkaline suspension aggregate into bundles which were detected by sedimentation analysis and confirmed by microscopic examination. They have been found to have a low oxygen content, and are probably derived from the cell-wall component of coalified wood.