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Berkowitz, Norbert. Fossil Hydrocarbons. Academic Press: San Diego, 1997. Chapter 2 of this book focuses on origins of fossil fuels, including the oil sands, asphalts, and sapropelic coals.Google Scholar

Bouška, Vladimír. Geochemistry of Coal. Elsevier: Amsterdam, 1981. Roughly the first half of this book is devoted to coalification processes.Google Scholar

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Durand, Bernard. (ed.) Kerogen. Éditions Technip: Paris, 1980. A collection of chapters from various authors, relating to various aspects of kerogen formation, composition, and characterization.

Engel, Michael H. and Macko, Stephen A. (eds.) Organic Geochemistry: Principles and Applications. Plenum Press: New York, 1993. This book is an edited collection of chapters by different authors, many of the chapters dealing in great detail with diagenesis and thermal alteration of organic matter.CrossRef

Given, Peter H.An essay on the organic geochemistry of coal. In: Coal Science. Volume 3. (Gorbaty, Martin L., Larsen, John W., and Wender, Irving, eds.) Academic Press: Orlando, 1984; pp. 65–252. A tour-de-force of ideas on coal formation and structure, supplemented with extensive references.Google Scholar

Levorsen, A.I.Geology of Petroleum. W.H. Freeman: San Francisco, 1954. An old book, but a classic in its field. Chapter 11 discusses the origin of petroleum.Google Scholar

Mackenzie, Fred T. (ed.) Sediments, Diagenesis, and Sedimentary Rocks. Elsevier: Amsterdam, 2005. This book is also a collection of chapters by various authors. Chapters 8 and 9, on coal formation and on oil and gas, respectively, are thorough discussions relevant to the present chapter.

Murchison, Duncan G. and Westoll, T. Stanley. Coal and Coal-bearing Strata. Oliver and Boyd: Edinburgh, 1968. Though now dated in part, this book still provides a good, solid review of coal geology.Google Scholar

Nardi, James B.Life in the Soil. University of Chicago Press: Chicago, 2007. To look at what happens to the “other” 98% of organic matter that actually does decay, this book provides much useful and interesting information on the roles of various organisms in breaking down accumulated organic matter.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

North, F.K.Petroleum Geology. Allen and Unwin: Boston, 1985. Chapters 6 and 7 in this useful text discuss organic matter and its accumulation, and then conversion to petroleum.Google Scholar

Selley, Richard C.Elements of Petroleum Geology. W.H. Freeman: New York, 1985. An excellent introductory text in the field. Chapter 5 discusses the origin of petroleum.Google Scholar

Speight, James G.The Chemistry and Technology of Petroleum. Marcel Dekker: New York, 1991. A very useful book on most aspects of petroleum. Chapter 2 is of particular relevance here.Google Scholar

Thomas, Larry. Handbook of Practical Coal Geology. Wiley: Chichester, UK, 1992. Chapter 3 is particularly useful; several other chapters also expand on the discussion presented here.Google Scholar

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