scholarly journals Considering Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Power System Expansion Planning for Europe and North Africa Using Multi-Objective Optimization

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 1301
Author(s):  
Tobias Junne ◽  
Karl-Kiên Cao ◽  
Kim Kira Miskiw ◽  
Heidi Hottenroth ◽  
Tobias Naegler

We integrate life cycle indicators for various technologies of an energy system model with high spatiotemporal detail and a focus on Europe and North Africa. Using multi-objective optimization, we calculate a pareto front that allows us to assess the trade-offs between system costs and life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of future power systems. Furthermore, we perform environmental ex-post assessments of selected solutions using a broad set of life cycle impact categories. In a system with the least life cycle GHG emissions, the costs would increase by ~63%, thereby reducing life cycle GHG emissions by ~82% compared to the cost-optimal solution. Power systems mitigating a substantial part of life cycle GHG emissions with small increases in system costs show a trend towards a deployment of wind onshore, electricity grid and a decline in photovoltaic plants and Li-ion storage. Further reductions are achieved by the deployment of concentrated solar power, wind offshore and nuclear power but lead to considerably higher costs compared to the cost-optimal solution. Power systems that mitigate life cycle GHG emissions also perform better for most impact categories but have higher ionizing radiation, water use and increased fossil fuel demand driven by nuclear power. This study shows that it is crucial to consider upstream GHG emissions in future assessments, as they represent an inheritable part of total emissions in ambitious energy scenarios that, so far, mainly aim to reduce direct CO2 emissions.

2008 ◽  
Vol 57 (11) ◽  
pp. 1683-1692 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Tilche ◽  
Michele Galatola

Anaerobic digestion is a well known process that (while still capable of showing new features) has experienced several waves of technological development. It was “born” as a wastewater treatment system, in the 1970s showed promise as an alternative energy source (in particular from animal waste), in the 1980s and later it became a standard for treating organic-matter-rich industrial wastewater, and more recently returned to the market for its energy recovery potential, making use of different biomasses, including energy crops. With the growing concern around global warming, this paper looks at the potential of anaerobic digestion in terms of reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The potential contribution of anaerobic digestion to GHG reduction has been computed for the 27 EU countries on the basis of their 2005 Kyoto declarations and using life cycle data. The theoretical potential contribution of anaerobic digestion to Kyoto and EU post-Kyoto targets has been calculated. Two different possible biogas applications have been considered: electricity production from manure waste, and upgraded methane production for light goods vehicles (from landfill biogas and municipal and industrial wastewater treatment sludges). The useful heat that can be produced as by-product from biogas conversion into electricity has not been taken into consideration, as its real exploitation depends on local conditions. Moreover the amount of biogas already produced via dedicated anaerobic digestion processes has also not been included in the calculations. Therefore the overall gains achievable would be even higher than those reported here. This exercise shows that biogas may considerably contribute to GHG emission reductions in particular if used as a biofuel. Results also show that its use as a biofuel may allow for true negative GHG emissions, showing a net advantage with respect to other biofuels. Considering also energy crops that will become available in the next few years as a result of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) reform, this study shows that biogas has the potential of covering almost 50% of the 2020 biofuel target of 10% of all automotive transport fuels, without implying a change in land use. Moreover, considering the achievable GHG reductions, a very large carbon emission trading “value” could support the investment needs. However, those results were obtained through a “qualitative” assessment. In order to produce robust data for decision makers, a quantitative sustainability assessment should be carried out, integrating different methodologies within a life cycle framework. The identification of the most appropriate policy for promoting the best set of options is then discussed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 143 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip J. Ball

Abstract A review of conventional, unconventional, and advanced geothermal technologies highlights just how diverse and multi-faceted the geothermal industry has become, harnessing temperatures from 7 °C to greater than 350 °C. The cost of reducing greenhouse emissions is examined in scenarios where conventional coal or combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power plants are abated. In the absence of a US policy on a carbon tax, the marginal abatement cost potential of these technologies is examined within the context of the social cost of carbon (SCC). The analysis highlights that existing geothermal heat and power technologies and emerging advanced closed-loop applications could deliver substantial cost-efficient baseload energy, leading to the long-term decarbonization. When considering an SCC of $25, in a 2025 development scenario, geothermal technologies ideally need to operate with full life cycle assessment (FLCA) emissions, lower than 50 kg(CO2)/MWh, and aim to be within the cost range of $30−60/MWh. At these costs and emissions, geothermal can provide a cost-competitive low-carbon, flexible, baseload energy that could replace existing coal and CCGT providing a significant long-term reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This study confirms that geothermally derived heat and power would be well positioned within a diverse low-carbon energy portfolio. The analysis presented here suggests that policy and regulatory bodies should, if serious about lowering carbon emissions from the current energy infrastructure, consider increasing incentives for geothermal energy development.


Author(s):  
Ching-Shin Norman Shiau ◽  
Scott B. Peterson ◽  
Jeremy J. Michalek

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) technology has the potential to help address economic, environmental, and national security concerns in the United States by reducing operating cost, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and petroleum consumption from the transportation sector. However, the net effects of PHEVs depend critically on vehicle design, battery technology, and charging frequency. To examine these implications, we develop an integrated optimization model utilizing vehicle physics simulation, battery degradation data, and U.S. driving data to determine optimal vehicle design and allocation of vehicles to drivers for minimum life cycle cost, GHG emissions, and petroleum consumption. We find that, while PHEVs with large battery capacity minimize petroleum consumption, a mix of PHEVs sized for 25–40 miles of electric travel produces the greatest reduction in lifecycle GHG emissions. At today’s average US energy prices, battery pack cost must fall below $460/kWh (below $300/kWh for a 10% discount rate) for PHEVs to be cost competitive with ordinary hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs). Carbon allowance prices have marginal impact on optimal design or allocation of PHEVs even at $100/tonne. We find that the maximum battery swing should be utilized to achieve minimum life cycle cost, GHGs, and petroleum consumption. Increased swing enables greater all-electric range (AER) to be achieved with smaller battery packs, improving cost competitiveness of PHEVs. Hence, existing policies that subsidize battery cost for PHEVs would likely be better tied to AER, rather than total battery capacity.


2011 ◽  
Vol 133 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ching-Shin Norman Shiau ◽  
Jeremy J. Michalek

We pose a reformulated model for optimal design and allocation of conventional (CV), hybrid electric (HEV), and plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) vehicles to obtain global solutions that minimize life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of the fleet. The reformulation is a twice-differentiable, factorable, nonconvex mixed-integer nonlinear programming (MINLP) model that can be solved globally using a convexification-based branch-and-reduce algorithm. We compare results to a randomized multistart local-search approach for the original formulation and find that local-search algorithms locate global solutions in 59% of trials for the two-segment case and 18% of trials for the three-segment case. The results indicate that minimum GHG emissions are achieved with a mix of PHEVs sized for 25–45 miles of electric travel. Larger battery packs allow longer travel on electrical energy, but production and weight of underutilized batteries result in higher GHG emissions. Under the current average U.S. grid mix, PHEVs offer a nearly 50% reduction in life cycle GHG emissions relative to equivalent conventional vehicles and about 5% improvement over HEVs when driven on the standard urban driving cycle. Optimal allocation of different PHEVs to different drivers turns out to be of second order importance for minimizing net life cycle GHGs.


2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 137
Author(s):  
Fernando Vinícius da Rocha ◽  
Abner Matheus João ◽  
Everton Lima Costa ◽  
José Vicente Caixeta Filho

Este trabalho busca analisar o quão determinante seriam as políticas precificação de emissões de gases do efeito estufa (GEE) na competividade logística agroindustrial no Brasil. Para isso, considerou dois projetos de infraestrutura logística em fase de pré-concessão, Ferrogrão e Ferrovia Paraense, visando o escoamento da produção de grãos no estado do Mato Grosso. Assim, determinando as áreas de influência não apenas por meio dos custos de transporte, bem como com a incorporação dos custos provenientes das emissões, as soluções logísticas intermodais, considerando os dois projetos, indicam que essas são as que apresentam potencial maior área de influência para captação das menores emissões GEE. Cenário esse corroborado, visto que, consideradas elevações no custo por tonelada de CO2 emitido, o escoamento por meio da Ferrogrão e da Ferrovia Paraense se tornariam maiores.Palavras-chave: Precificação. Emissões. Agronegócio. Logística. Grãos.GHG PRICING POLICY: economic and environmental impacts on grain agrologistics in Mato GrossoAbstractThis paper analyzes how crucial the pricing policies of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions would be in the agroindustrial logistic competitiveness in Brazil. Two transportation infrastructure projects are analyzed, Ferrogrão and Pará Railway. By determining the areas of influence not only through transportation costs, as well as the incorporation of emissions costs, intermodal logistics solutions, considering the two projects, indicate that these are the ones with the largest potential area of influence to capture the lowest GHG emissions. This is corroborated as, considering increases in the cost per ton of CO2 emitted, the flow through Ferrogrão and Pará Railway would become larger.Keywords: Pricing. Emissions. Agribusiness. Logistics. Grains.


2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. e0101
Author(s):  
Jhenny Cayambe ◽  
Ana Iglesias

Aim of study: Reduction of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions derived from food production is imperative to meet climate change mitigation targets. Sustainable mitigation strategies also combine improvements in soil fertility and structure, nutrient recycling, and the use more efficient use of water. Many of these strategies are based on agricultural know-how, with proven benefits for farmers and the environment. This paper considers measures that could contribute to emissions reduction in subsistence farming systems and evaluation of management alternatives in the Central Andes of Ecuador. We focused on potato and milk production because they represent two primary employment and income sources in the region’s rural areas and are staple foods in Latin America.Area of study: Central Andes of Ecuador: Carchi, Chimborazo, Cañar provincesMaterial and methods: Our approach to explore the cost and the effectiveness of mitigation measures combines optimisation models with participatory methods.Main results: Results show the difference of mitigation costs between regions which should be taken into account when designing of any potential support given to farmers. They also show that there is a big mitigation potential from applying the studied measures which also lead to increased soil fertility and soil structure improvements due to the increased soil organic carbon.Research highlights: This study shows that marginal abatement cost curves derived for different agro-climatic regions are helpful tools for the development of realistic regional mitigation options for the agricultural sector.


2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 5-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dariusz Kowalski ◽  
Beata Grzyl ◽  
Adam Kristowski

Abstract Steel materials, due to their numerous advantages - high availability, easiness of processing and possibility of almost any shaping are commonly applied in construction for carrying out basic carrier systems and auxiliary structures. However, the major disadvantage of this material is its high corrosion susceptibility, which depends strictly on the local conditions of the facility and the applied type of corrosion protection system. The paper presents an analysis of life cycle costs of structures installed on bridges used in the road lane conditions. Three anti-corrosion protection systems were considered, analyzing their essential cost components. The possibility of reducing significantly the costs associated with anti-corrosion protection at the stage of steel barriers maintenance over a period of 30 years has been indicated. The possibility of using a new approach based on the life cycle cost estimation in the anti-corrosion protection of steel elements is presented. The relationship between the method of steel barrier protection, the scope of repair, renewal work and costs is shown. The article proposes an optimal solution which, while reducing the cost of maintenance of road infrastructure components in the area of corrosion protection, allows to maintain certain safety standards for steel barriers that are installed on the bridge.


2020 ◽  
Vol 167 ◽  
pp. 04001
Author(s):  
M Córdova-Suárez ◽  
E Barreno-Ávila ◽  
P Villacrés-Cevallos ◽  
O Ruíz-Robalino

It is established that the interprovincial transportation in bus terminals of the Cities such as Ambato, Riobamba, Salcedo, Latacunga and Guaranda have contributed to the build-up of external costs of Greenhouse Gases (GHG) The climate change costs are calculated by multiplying the carbon emissions by the cost factor. To quantify the GHG emissions, this study has taken into account of both the direct and indirect sources of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG), as well as the ISO 14064.1: 2006 standard. In view thereof, it was found that the 11 bus terminals of the five cities, namely Latacunga, Riobamba Salcedo, Ambato, Guaranda-which accounts for around 3225 buses, had accounted for the emissions of 25,746.8 tCO2eq, 37,404.6 tCO2eq, 8,762.7 tCO2eq, 92,364.9 tCO2eq, 31,990.3 tCO2eq, respectively. Simply, the average load of such pollution produced per vehicle was 60.8 tCO2eq. and the total emissions were 196,269.3 tCO2eq with an estimated GHG contamination cost of €27,477,702 per year.


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