SEM, X-ray CT and infrared thermal imager were used to contrast tests of methane adsorption. Four categories of mesostructures were classified based on SEM micrographs. Heterogeneity of methane adsorption is related to four categories of mesostructures. Both swelling and extrusion deformation occurred in coal during methane adsorption. Deformations make the direct determination of regional uptake a challenge.