ABSTRACT
Coal in the power generation industry is the norm since it represents a steady supply in lieu of the vast reserves in the USA and it is the cheapest available fossil fuel. According to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), coal accounts for 43.1% of the total energy consumed for power generation. In the year 2010 coal consumption in the power sector was to the tune of 1085.3 million short tons, which is around 92% of the total coal consumption in the USA (Watson et al., 2011).
