2m. Future Technologies: Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC)

Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) is a technology that generates electricity in two phases, or a ‘combined cycle’. First, coal is converted into a synthetic gas. The synthetic gas is used as fuel to generate electricity. A byproduct of the first phase of electrical generation is an extremely hot gas. This hot gas is used to boil water, driving a second turbine for another round of electrical generation.

IGCC is a highly efficient, energy-saving combustion technology.  On the environmental front, these super-clean units remove as much as 95 to 99 percent of the SO₂ and NO_x emissions while helping to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂). IGCC plants in the United States are not yet fully commercial.