NOVELTY - Generating thermal energy from coal involves combusting coal in boilers to raise steam which is fed into steam turbines to generate electric power, where pollutants in the form of sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), Hg, particulate matter, ash, and carbon dioxide (CO2) are produced, and where all the streams that make up the pollutants are integrated in a closed manner which prevents any one of the pollutants to be discharged into the atmosphere, while converting the pollutants into useful, valuable products.    USE - For producing electric power by combustion of coal and utilizing the pollutants e.g. sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), Hg, particulate matter, ash, and carbon dioxide (CO2), generated to form valuable products e.g. elemental sulfur, mercury, fertilizers; transportation fuels such as methanol, gasoline or dimethyl ether and as chemical feedstock (all claimed).    ADVANTAGE - The method converts SO2 into elemental sulfur which is valuable, marketable product; it converts NOx into nitrogen and carbon monoxide, which is a feedstock for producing fertilizer, which again is a valuable and marketable product; it converts Hg into elemental Hg, which is a valuable, marketable product; it collects particulate matter in baghouses and feeds it into a gasifier for converting into glassy, inert slag that can be marketed as a clean aggregate; it converts the ash into a glassy, inert slag that can be marketed as a clean aggregate, thus preventing it from being stored in ponds; it reduces CO2 which is contained in flue gas (N2+CO2) with hot char to N2+2CO that serves as a feedstock to make fertilizer; it avoids the burning of coal in boilers of existing electric power stations by efficiently processing the coal upstream of the boilers in an environmentally closed system while producing clean gases that are utilized to generate clean, low-cost power and valuable by-products; it prevents layoffs from shutting down coal-burning power generating facilities and, instead, creates many additional well-paying jobs; capitalizes on existing infrastructure in the power stations that is quite costly to replace; creates energy security by providing ample capacity to prevent black-outs; eliminates the need for pulverizing the coal, as pulverization is notorious in producing fine particulate matter that is injurious to health; increases the availability of boilers currently used in coal-burning power stations, by avoiding the burning of coal altogether in boilers, which currently demand frequent maintenance caused by deposits within the boilers as a result of combusting coal in the boilers; generates clean electric power more efficiently while still using existing boilers to raise steam that can serve as the steam cycle of a hybrid, efficient combined cycle power generation; increases capacity of power generation with low capital investment; and increases the net profit of power producers using clean gases made from coal, which will enable such producers to offer attractive power costs to the consumer.