Patent ID: 7279655

Claim:
A method for producing a net surplus of electrical power from a carbonaceous feedstock, by reforming the carbonaceous feedstock into a fuel gas suitable for use in an electrical generator, such that substantially more electrical power is produced than is consumed, comprising the steps of: (a) providing a system configured to reform the carbonaceous feedstock into the fuel gas and to use the fuel gas to generate electrical power, the system comprising an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) torch and the electrical generator; (b) using the ICP torch to reform the carbonaceous feedstock into the fuel gas suitable for use in the electrical generator, the carbonaceous feedstock having been selected such that substantially more electrical power can be produced by the fuel gas than is consumed by operating the system wherein the plasma gas used to generate the ICP has no fuel value until it has been reformed; (c) introducing the fuel gas into an electrical generator; (d) using the fuel gas in the electrical generator to produce a first quantity of electrical power that is utilized to operate the system, and a second quantity of electrical power that corresponds to the net surplus of electrical power; and (e) distributing the second quantity of electrical power to be used for purposes other than operating the system.