syngas is generally mixture of CO (carbon monoxide) and H2 (hydrogen). Can be obtained from partial oxidation of gas, oil and coal - in fact any hydrocarbon like biomass as well. You burn the hydrocarbon with a controlled amount of oxygen, which is less than the amount used normally to create heat and CO2 and H2O.
In case of UCG, the syngas also contains CO2 and methane in substantial quantities and lots of other components in minor amounts.
Lots of R&D has been done on UCG, but generally knowldge relates to specific aspects and overall the industry has not reached commercial scale. Difficulty with process is you need to do relatively large burns - like the one aimed for by MEE - in order to understand and develop your knowledge/methods. It can't be studied in the lab. This slows development. Also, previous waves of interest in the process didn't lead to commercialisation due to low natural gas prices and difficulties in the process; First attempts at doing UCG go back to around 1911; the Soviets did it alot starting in 1934; the Americans had a big program from the 1970s - 1989; so maybe its time for the Aussies to see if they can make it economically viable
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