In 2002, a group of MIT Faculty decided to undertake a series of interdisciplinary studies about
how the United States and the world would meet future energy demand without increasing emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) or other greenhouse gases. The first study “The Future of Nuclear Power” appeared in 2003. In 2004 a similar
group of MIT faculty undertook the present study, “The Future of Coal.” The purpose of the study is to examine the role of coal in a world
where constraints on carbon emissions are adopted to mitigate global warming. The study’s particular emphasis is to compare the performance
and cost of different coal combustion
technologies when combined with an integrated system for CO2 capture and sequestration.