Rising gasoline prices have been a constant source of concern for everyone in recent years. No matter how much money they make, no one wants to pay a lot to put gas in their car, especially now that so many people are out of work. Unfortunately, paying extra at the pump seems unavoidable since the average person relies on gasoline in their daily lives. Whether they have a job to attend to every day or are looking for one, most people just can’t refuse to pay high gas prices. However, this scenario is likely to change in the future, thanks to a little-known technology called underground coal gasification.

Considering its ability to change the way we power our cars, along with its effect on our pocketbooks, it’s surprising that more people don’t know about underground coal gasification. It has the added bonus of reducing emissions and eliminating the need for mining, which should appeal to everyone in a world that is “going green.” Although the most important aspects of underground coal gasification have to do with saving money and our planet, it helps to have some understanding of how the process works when it comes to furthering this cause.

Underground coal gasification takes advantage of our abundant natural resources while using technology wisely. To start the process, two holes are drilled just above where the coal is found, which is called a coal seam. Air is pumped through the first well and the coal is ignited until it reaches temperatures high enough to create carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrogen, and trace amounts of hydrogen sulfide and methane. Oxidizers introduced through the first well guide the newly created syngas through the second well, where it is filtered to create clean fuel.

Although most people are unaware of underground coal gasification or have only recently heard of it, the idea has been around for some time. Basic work was done on the process in the late 19th century, although most experimentation at the time was thwarted by World War I and did not resume until after World War II ended. Most of the testing of this process occurred in what was the Soviet Union around 1930. Since then, however, other countries have become interested in underground gasification of coal. China is just one of them, and is now home to the leading operation.

The United States also experimented with the technology for some time, becoming particularly interested during the 1970s due to the energy crisis at the time. But the country became complacent when oil prices suddenly plummeted in the 1980s, effectively halting research into underground coal gasification. Due to rising oil prices and increased concern for the environment, interest in the process has picked up once again. Recent demonstrations near a town called Chinchilla in Queensland, Australia have shown that the process is far more beneficial to the environment than our current method of obtaining energy. These findings have added to the worldwide interest in underground coal gasification.

One might wonder how this process will save consumers money. It is a simple example of supply and demand. Oil prices rise substantially when one of our major oil suppliers suspends sales to our country, or when equipment critical to supplying us with oil temporarily breaks down. Oil is a somewhat limited resource, which makes it more expensive. Converting our natural coal resource to gas not only means there is more of it, but the process is less expensive than traditional mining methods. Simply transporting gas is also much less expensive than transporting oil or solid coal, and there is no waste to clean up as the entire process is done underground. The resulting gas is filtered once it reaches the open air, so what we see is called clean fuel.

Lack of awareness among the general public about underground coal gasification has impeded its progression as the next major source of energy. Anyone who is interested in saving money on gas in the near future and saving the environment at the same time should take a closer look at this process. Everyone knows that our current way of obtaining energy needs a makeover, and betting on a new technique like underground gasification of coal could result in the change that the energy industry needs.