This paper surveyed coal gasification under plasma conditions in the past 40 years. There are four different cases: 1) Coal pyrolysis under plasma conditions and the main product is acetylene; 2) Coal gasification under plasma arc conditions; 3) Plasma as ignition source for coal gasification; 3) Co-gasification of coal with biomass or waste. The most obvious advantage for plasma gasification of coal is feedstock flexibility, i.e., low rank coals can be used as feedstock together with biomass or waste. The disadvantage is it is difficult to achieve low energy efficiency. This paper summarized the current status of plasma gasification of coals, reviewed the performances of different plasma reactors, and provided some suggestions for future development.
