The beginning of carbochemistry goes back to the 16th century. At that time, large quantities of charcoal were needed for the smelting of iron ores. Since the production of charcoal required large amounts of slowly-regenerating wood, the use of coal was studied. The use of pure coal was difficult because of the amount of liquid and solid by-products that were generated. In order to improve the handling the coal was initially treated as wood in kilns to produce coke.