Identification of organic matter in lignite samples from basins in the Czech Republic: Geochemical and petrographic properties in relation to lithotype

► Five Czech Tertiary deposits studied using coal organic geochemical methods. ► Four lithotypes: xylite rich, matrix, liptobioliths, and sapropelic coals characterized. ► The n-alkane distributions vary according to coal lithotype. ► The majority of the xylite rich, matrix and sapropelic coals originate from mixed forests. ► Particular composition of liptobiolith 2 from the Sokolov basin relate to density separation in water.