N-methyl pyrrolidone (NMP) raw coal extract (EXT), hydrogenated coal extract (HEXT) and the blend of EXT and HEXT in NMP (BLD), from two bituminous coals, were studied. The extracts were carbonized in both tube-bomb and a temperature programmable furnace. Elemental analysis, FTIR spectroscopy and optical microscopy techniques were employed to characterize the extracts and the carbonization residues. It was found that the extracts resembled petroleum-derived pitches in the hydrogen content and (C/H)(atomic) ratio. Higher oxygen and nitrogen contents differentiated the coal extracts from commercial petroleum pitch. More carbon and hydrogen, and lesser oxygen and sulfur differentiated HEXT from EXT. The ratios of integrated IR band intensity for aromatic and aliphatic CH stretching indicate that the relative content of aliphatic hydrogen in EXT is higher than in HEXT. HEXT contains comparatively more aromatic hydrogen, a feature necessary for thermal stability and fluidity during carbonization. BLD materials are at a place somewhere in between. Kinetic modeling of the aliphatic hydrogen change during carbonization reveals that EXT has high carbonization rate and low apparent activation energy. This can be related to the optical texture size of carbonization residues. The residues made from EXTs exhibited fine mosaic optical texture and limited mesophase development. HEXTs were readily converted into highly anisotropic coke. BLDs produced carbonization residues with intermediate properties. Extracts with similar activation energies produced similar residues in the same coal series. The degree or extent of anisotropy displayed by the carbonization residues was found to be dependent on the relative distribution of aromatic and aliphatic hydrogen. (C) 2002 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.