A quantitative roadmap for China towards carbon neutrality in 2060 using methanol and ammonia as energy carriers

Yinan Li; Song Lan; Morten Ryberg; Javier Pérez-Ramírez; Xiaonan Wang

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2021.102513

A quantitative roadmap for China towards carbon neutrality in 2060 using methanol and ammonia as energy carriers

iScience. 2021 May 4;24(6):102513. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2021.102513. eCollection 2021 Jun 25.

Authors

Yinan Li¹, Song Lan¹, Morten Ryberg², Javier Pérez-Ramírez^{1

3}, Xiaonan Wang¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, 4 Engineering Drive, Singapore 117585, Singapore.
² Quantitative Sustainability Assessment Group, Sustainability Division, Department of Technology, Management and Economics, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark.
³ Institute for Chemical and Bioengineering, Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, ETH Zurich, HCIE125, Vladimir-Prelog-Weg 1, 8093 Zurich, Switzerland.

Abstract

Carbon neutrality by 2060 is the recent expression of China's international commitment to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions. Energy and chemical sectors, the two main contributors for carbon dioxide emissions in China, are the biggest bottlenecks for reaching the objective of carbon neutrality. Moreover, coal-to-ammonia production and coal-to-methanol production are the major CO₂ emission process contributors in China's coal chemical sector. Herein, a possible route to the carbon neutral target based on energy-chemical nexus for electricity generation as well as methanol and ammonia production is proposed in this study. The most cost-effective solution for meeting the commitment is identified by considering regional variations in renewable and non-renewable resources and adopting an optimized regional cooperation. According to the roadmap presented in this study, an optimized combination of fossil fuels and renewable energies forming "blue energy economy" is feasible and promising.

Keywords: Energy engineering; Energy policy; Energy resources; Energy sustainability; Energy systems.