<p>Mining dynamic disasters, such as coal and gas outbursts, pose significant threats to the safe and efficient production of mines. Investigating the micro-rheological properties of different coal types is essential for optimizing mining operations and enhancing disaster prevention strategies. In this study, nanoindentation techniques were utilized to analyze the structural surfaces of typical tectonic and primary coal samples, focusing on their fundamental and rheological mechanical properties. The results reveal that the deformation and strength characteristics of coal structural surfaces are strongly influenced by their formation mechanisms. Structural surfaces formed by cracking exhibit higher elastic modulus, hardness, and stiffness compared to those formed by rheological processes, leading to greater resistance to deformation and a higher elastic energy ratio. During creep and stress relaxation tests, coal samples demonstrated deformation and load recovery, with higher loading rates resulting in more pronounced rheological behavior and slower recovery. Tectonic coal exhibited stronger rheological behavior but weaker deformation recovery ability. Under nanoindentation loading conditions, tectonic coal displayed thixotropic properties, behaving as a shear-thinning material. Thixotropic models effectively describe the unconventional rheological characteristics of coal, which are fundamentally attributed to variations in molecular structures, such as chain entanglement, cross-linking, and internal hydrogen bonding associations, and their responses to different loading rates. These findings deepen our understanding of the micro-mechanisms driving coal's macro creep behavior, providing valuable insights into the initiation and prevention of coal and gas outbursts.</p>