Shifeng Dai is a professor at the Key Laboratory of Coal Resources and Safe Mining, China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing). He had his Ph.D. (2002) from China University of Mining and Technology. His research fields include coal geology, coal geochemistry, and coal-hosted critical metal ore deposits. He is the Editor-in-Chief of International Journal of Coal Geology (2007- ) and was the President of The Society For Organic Petrology (2015–2017). He is the Chief Scientist of National Key Basic Research Program of China and Changjiang Scholar Professor of Ministry of Education (China). He published over 180 research papers, co-authored/edited five books, and edited eight special issues for international journals. He is a recipient of the highest award of the of The Society For Organic Petrology John Castano Award (2021) and the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars of China (2007). Dr. Robert B. Finkelman, retired in 2005 after 32 years with the U.S. Geological Survey. He is currently a Research Professor in the Dept. of Geosciences at the University of Texas at Dallas and a Distinguished Professor at the China University of Mining and Technology. Most of Dr. Finkelman’s professional career has been devoted to understanding the properties of coal and how these properties affect coal’s technological performance, economic byproduct potential and environmental and health impacts. He has authored more than 850 publications. Dr. Finkelman is a Fellow of the Geological Society of America and has served as Chairman of the Geological Society of America’s Coal Geology Division and as president of the Society for Organic Petrology. He was a recipient of the Gordon H. Wood Jr. Memorial Award from the AAPG Eastern Section; and a recipient of the Cady Award from the GSA’s Coal Geology Division. Jim Hower received his BA, MS, and PhD degrees in geology from Millersville University, Ohio State, and Penn State. He has been a scientist at the University of Kentucky’s Center for Applied Energy Research (CAER) since 1978 and has been a Research Professor in the University of Kentucky Department of Earth & Environmental Research since 2016 with a research focus on a broad range of topics within coal and fly ash petrology and chemistry. As of June 30th, Jim retired from the university, but he is still active at the CAER and elsewhere. He has authored over 480 publications in more than 120 journals and books. He was the editor of International Journal of Coal Geology and Coal Combustion & Gasification Products for 10 years each. Jim has received the top awards from The Society for Organic Petrology, International Committee for Coal & Organic Petrology, and the Geological Society of America’s Energy Geology Division. David French is an Adjunct Associate Professor within the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. He received his BA from Victoria University, Wellington, New Zealand, and his PhD in igneous petrology from Newcastle University, Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. Initially he was an exploration and mining geologist for base and precious metals and industrial minerals. Subsequently, he was a research associate involved in a study of Australian oil shales followed by a period as a manager of a coal trace element geochemistry and mineralogy laboratory section. David then joined the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, initially applying advanced mineralogical techniques to ore formation research, then to studies of coal geochemistry, mineralogy, and coal utilization by-products. Since 2014 he has been an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of New South Wales continuing his research interest. He has published over 130 papers and numerous research reports. Ian Graham is a senior lecturer in Earth Sciences within the School of Biological, earth and Environmnetal Sciences, UNSW Sydney, Australia. He received his BAppSc (1st class honours) and PhD degrees from the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), Sydney, Australia. His research fields are very broad and generally cover the fields of mineralogy, geochemistry and igneous petrology. He particularly focusses on inorganic geochemistry and mineral matter within coal, unconventional sediment-hosted critical element mineralisation, intraplate volcanism, gem deposits and Ag-Au deposits. He has published over 115 journal papers, co-authored/edited 5 books, and edited 4 special issues for international journals. He is an Associate Editor of the International Journal of Coal Geology and Mineralogical Magazine. Lei Zhao received a bachelor's degree in Environmental Engineering from China University of Mining and Technology in 2004, her MSc degree from China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing) in 2007, and PhD in Applied Geology from the University of New South Wales, Australia in 2012. She is a professor at China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing), China. Her main research interests are mineral matter and trace elements in coal, strategically critical metals in coal-bearing sequences and coal combustion by-products, as well as environmental impact of coal utilization. She is a member of the editorial board of International Journal of Coal Geology (2015-present). She is a recipient of the National Science Fund of China for Excellent Young Scholars. She has authored and co-authored over 20 refereed journal articles, and co-edited 2 special issues for international journals.
