Bituminous coal

Bituminous coal is a soft coal containing a tar like substance called bitumen. It is better quality coal than lignite coal[?] but lesser quality coal than anthracite coal. When used for many industrial processes, bituminous coal must first be "coked" to remove the bitumen. Coked bituminous coal (usually just called "coke") is of comparable quality to anthracite coal.

Bituminous coal is mined in the Appalachian[?] region, primarily to be burned at electricity production plants. Mining is done via both surface and underground mines. While coal mining is an important part of Appalachia's economy, many miners are afflicted with black lung disease[?].

The last words uttered by William Barton Rogers[?], the founder of MIT, were "bituminous coal".