Volume 31: Clean Energy Technologies towards Carbon Neutrality

Decarbonizing energy-intensive industries by coupling renewable energy and low-carbon technologies Jing Luo, Qingyuan Xu, Haotian Ju, Nung Siong Lai, Yinan Li, Xiaonan Wang

Abstract

In 2020, China made an official announcement of reducing CO2 emissions and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060. Beyond the energy-related emissions, the steel and cement industries are typically fossil fuel-dependent and serve as the main contributors of CO2 emissions, which renders achieving carbon neutrality of particular challenges. These industries are highly energy-demanding, while only a few viable low-carbon solutions that would play a significant role during the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energies are commercially available. Herein, this study mainly focuses on the mitigation potential of low-carbon and carbon-negative technologies for these industries. An overall systematic optimizing model containing the above four industrial departments in China has been established, taking their regional demand, cost, GHG emissions, low-carbon strategies, etc. into consideration. According to the model, the most cost-effective solution supporting carbon neutrality by forming a combination of renewable energy, low-carbon and carbon-negative technologies, and energy-intensive sectors has been proposed and reasonably identified.

Keywords carbon neutrality, optimization, energy, steel industry, cement industry