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Low-carbon is a part of China's efforts to pursue the national strategy of "carbon peaking and carbon neutrality." Meanwhile, the path of low-carbon transformation of logistics has become a topic of global concern. This study constructs a technical framework of logistics carbon emissions (LCE), which is composed of carbon emission evaluation, carbon emission prediction and low-carbon strategy. All 13 prefecture-level cities in Jiangsu, China, are the application objects in empirical research. Then, the influence analysis of the LCE efficiency based on the panel Tobit model and the evolution of LCE under different scenarios are explored. The results show that: (ⅰ) during the study period (2013–2020), the LCE in Jiangsu showed an overall upward trend, with Xuzhou, Suzhou and Nanjing being the cities with the highest carbon emissions; (ⅱ) the static efficiency of LCE in Jiangsu is at a medium level, with fluctuations in Suzhou, Changzhou, Zhenjiang, Nantong, and Suqian caused by the technical change index; (ⅲ) economic level, industrial structure, fixed asset utilization rate, and ecological environment in Jiangsu are significantly positively correlated with LCE efficiency, while education popularization and energy intensity are negative; (ⅳ) LCE in Jiangsu has been drastically reduced in the low-carbon scenario compared to the baseline scenario. On the above basis, this study proposes suggestions for the low-carbon development strategies of logistics in Jiangsu. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This work meticulously details strategies for enhancing CO 2 mass transport in eCO 2 RR. • A comprehensive discussion on the effects of electrode are provided. • Effects of electrolyzer designs and electrolysis conditions are also discussed. • Potential solutions for CO 2 mass transfer in eCO 2 RR industrialization are summarized. The imperative to address climate change and CO 2 emissions has elicited substantial interest in the field of electrochemical CO 2 reduction reaction (eCO 2 RR) as an avenue to both environmental sustainability and the production of value-added fuels. However, the selectivity and efficiency of eCO 2 RR remain below the industrial requirement for its implementation at high current density. One pivotal strategy to ameliorate this deficiency involves augmenting the mass transport of CO 2 to electrode, thereby alleviating the competing hydrogen evolution reaction and consequently enhancing eCO 2 RR performance. Herein, we primarily discuss the CO 2 mass transport enhancement strategies through electrode and electrolyzer designs, as well as electrolysis conditions. The electrode designs are first presented, including wettability regulation, porous substrates construction, catalyst layer and gas diffusion layer designs. Then, we highlight state-of-the-art electrolyzer designs, including the bipolar membrane structure, interdigitated flow field and in-situ exsolution of CO 2 structure. The electrolyzer based gas–liquid Taylor flow is also introduced. Following this, we delve into the impact of various electrolysis conditions, encompassing the electrolyte, electrolysis potentials, CO 2 pressure, CO 2 flow rate and reaction temperature. Finally, we conclude this review by delineating persisting challenges and potential solutions aimed at advancing CO 2 mass transport for the industrial implementation of eCO 2 RR technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reducing China's carbon dioxide (CO 2) emissions primarily involves efforts from energy-intensive sectors, including the construction and hygienic ceramics manufacturing industries. Although the majority of extant studies have focused on estimating marginal abatement cost (MAC) of CO 2 emissions, there are mainly four shortcomings: (i) most of studies have explored this issue at industrial level or provincial level, the evidence at the enterprise level is limited; ii) the selection of emissions abatement measures and strategies is normally arbitrary; iii) the characteristics of MAC changing with the amount of emissions reduction is usually ignored; and iv) the analysis of influencing factors for MACs is not included. Here, this study provided an innovative MAC estimation for China's 913 construction ceramics enterprises and 360 hygienic ceramic enterprises. A quadratic directional distance function method, including multiple emissions abatement measures and all possible directional vectors representing different emission reduction strategies, is applied to calculate the lowest MAC. We further incorporate the abatement level from 1 to 99% into MACs estimation, and investigated its influencing factors. The results mainly illustrated three relevant findings. (i) The average MAC for construction ceramics manufacturing is 2203 CNY/t CO 2 , which is lower than that for hygienic ceramics manufacturing of about 8416 CNY/t CO 2. (ii) Construction ceramics production enterprises would be willing to downscale production to achieve the lowest cost for emissions reduction, whereas hygienic ceramics production enterprises tend to choose increasing the intermediate input. (iii) Energy use efficiency positively influences MACs for both construction and hygienic ceramics production enterprises, while intermediate input rate, energy consumption structure (the proportion of fuel coal consumption in total energy) and profitability are negatively related to MAC. Results and findings can provide references for the formulation of carbon emission reduction policies in China's construction and hygienic ceramics manufacturing industries. • China's construction and hygienic ceramic manufacturing industries are analyzed. • Marginal abatement cost of CO 2 emissions is used in the abatement cost estimation. • All possible directions are considered in quadratic directional distance function. • The least costly abatement measure and influencing factors of MAC are identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to China's escalating demand for renewable energy and carbon emissions reduction, and given its prominent position as one of the fastest-growing nations in photovoltaic (PV) development, a comprehensive assessment of the potential of both centralized and distributed photovoltaic systems in China is crucial. However, current research on PV potential assessment presents several challenges. Therefore, this study presents a five-dimensional assessment model, encompassing geographical, technical, economic, CO 2 mitigation, and realizable potential, to systematically map China's centralized photovoltaic (CPV) and distributed photovoltaic (DPV) potential. The findings underscore the vast PV potential across the country, with areas of 3.11 million km2 and 252.72 thousand km2 deemed suitable for CPV and DPV development, respectively. This corresponds to a technical potential of 416,383.27 and 28,261.53 TWh/yr for CPV and DPV, respectively. Furthermore, this study explored the economic potential of CPV and DPV, revealing that the generation costs of both CPV and DPV in China are in proximity to the feed-in tariffs. With technological advancements and economies of scale, a broader PV potential is projected to be economically feasible by 2030. Full implementation of the current economic potential can yield an annual CO 2 mitigation of 54.20 and 8.39 gigatonnes (Gt) using CPV and DPV, respectively. Notably, China's PV potential exhibits distinct regional heterogeneity, with CPV potential concentrated primarily in the western region and DPV potential distributed predominantly across the eastern provinces. This study identified the most resource-intensive areas in the western region of Inner Mongolia for CPV and in the coastal regions of Guangdong and Shandong provinces for DPV. Considering policy imperatives and the development status, China's PV sector holds tremendous potential to significantly contribute to carbon reduction targets. Based on the findings, policy recommendations are proposed, emphasizing the imperative of jointly developing CPV and DPV systems, as well as implementing phased and planned growth strategies for PV growth. • A five-dimensional assessment estimated China's PV feasibility and CO 2 mitigation. • China has 416,383.27 TWh/yr CPV potential and 28,261.53 TWh/yr DPV potential. • China's CPV and DPV are at a critical point: the LCOE is close to the feed-in tariff. • Photovoltaic development can contribute to China's carbon reduction goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The distribution of trade-embodied carbon emissions has frequently been a contestation in international climate negotiations. The proposed shared responsibility approach developed by Jakob et al. (2021) is based on economic benefits derived from generating emissions without paying for associated social costs, which are represented by the carbon price. The impacts of the real tariffs on economic benefits were not considered. Here, we improve the proposed approach by introducing the real import and export tariffs and using tariff and elasticity data specified at both country- and sector-level. We re-investigate the responsibility for trade-embodied carbon emissions sharing between 141 economies for 2017. Results show that the improved shared responsibility approach leads to a less extreme distribution of responsibility among countries. The top three emitters, China, the EU27, and the USA, were allocated 939, 761, and 702 million tons of trade-embodied carbon emissions that are 32% below, 39% above, and 50% above production-based emissions and 62% above, 17% below, and 33% below consumption-based emissions, respectively. Furthermore, we investigate the impacts of introducing tariffs and raising carbon prices on responsibility distribution and find that both will increase import-embodied responsibility and decrease export-embodied responsibility and thus favor net exporters of carbon emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The power sector significantly contributes to global greenhouse gas emissions, making its transition to low-carbon energy crucial for achieving carbon neutrality. Zhengzhou, recognized as one of the China's "National Central Cities", has a high energy demand. Its power sector, which is primarily reliant on coal, is responsible for half of the city's CO 2 emissions. The low emissions analysis platform (LEAP) model serves as an effective tool for exploring the power sector's transition to low-carbon sources. However, studies on the combined reduction in air pollutants and CO 2 at the city level are scarce. This study focuses on Zhengzhou's power sector, examining the power composition, coal usage, CO 2 and air pollutant emissions, social costs, and employment effects across five scenarios using LEAP. The five scenarios are the business-as-usual scenario, the reference scenario, the carbon neutrality scenario, and two optimization scenarios with different carbon peak and carbon neutrality time. CO 2 emissions will peak in 2030 at 34.6 Mt in the reference scenario, and in 2022 at 32.4 Mt in the carbon neutrality scenario. Emissions in the reference and carbon neutrality scenarios will decrease by 64.8% and 75.2%, respectively, from those in the business-as-usual scenario due to emission reduction strategies. In the carbon neutrality scenario, coal power reformation is the most significant measure, accounting for 45.7% of the total CO 2 reduction compared to that in the business-as-usual scenario, followed by the integration of external electricity (17.8%) and solar energy (13.6%). This scenario also demonstrated a strong synergistic effect on reducing air pollutants and CO 2 emissions. Although the carbon neutrality scenario incurs costs 60.4 billion yuan higher than those of the reference scenario, its CO 2 mitigation cost is 66.1 yuan/t lower. This indicated that more rapid CO 2 reduction, despite higher economic inputs, is justified by ambitious CO 2 reduction goals and environmental benefits. Enhancing the use of renewable energy technologies for research and development to lower costs could increase the economic feasibility of the carbon neutrality scenario. In the two optimization scenarios, complete elimination of CO 2 and air pollutant emissions is achieved by 2060, with all the electricity generated from renewable sources, although issues of uncertainty and stability need to be addressed. The study also highlights that renewable energy development will significantly boost employment, with an estimated 1.19 million jobs in 2060 in the carbon neutrality scenario. Finally, the paper concludes with a sensitivity analysis and offers policy recommendations for the power sector's low-carbon transition. [Display omitted] • Low-carbon transition paths of Zhengzhou power sector are investigated by scenario analysis. • Coal power reformation and external electricity are effective measures for CO 2 reduction. • Synergistic reduction of air pollutants and CO 2 is achieved in the CAN scenario. • The CAN scenario has a good cost-effectiveness of CO 2 mitigation. • Policy recommendations for Zhengzhou power sector are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's manufacturing sector faces pressure to reduce its carbon emissions embodied in foreign trade, yet the influence of the sector's structural and path characteristics on reducing embodied carbon emission (ECE) remains unclear. We developed a research framework to analyze the trade-embodied carbon transfer networks of China's 11 manufacturing industries with 48 economies from 2000 to 2019, identifying the key carbon transfer-in industries and paths. By integrating network characteristics, we assessed the ECE reduction pressure on key manufacturing industries and identified factors hindering its decline. ECE in China's manufacturing foreign trade increased by 273.1% from 2000 to 2019, with the ECE in exports to developing countries since 2012 (255.58 Mt) surpassing exports to developed countries (228.31 Mt). China's medium-low and medium-high technology manufacturing are key carbon transfer-in industries, observed large decreases in the importance of the carbon transfer-in paths from Europe, the United States, Japan, and South Korea, versus notable increases from the Row Asia and Pacific region. Metal manufacturing, non-metallic mineral manufacturing, and chemical manufacturing were the top three industries facing ECE reduction pressure. The network structure indicators obstruct the ECE reduction pressure in metal manufacturing, whereas the network path indicators obstruct the pressure in the other key manufacturing industries. To alleviate the ECE reduction pressure within China's manufacturing foreign trade, China's manufacturing sector should enhance trade cooperation with Asia–Pacific countries. The study's insights offer valuable references for China's formulation of domestic manufacturing emission reduction policies and its participation in international climate negotiations. • A novel framework lets us assess the embodied CO 2 reduction pressure. • China's manufacturing sector embodied CO 2 increased by 273.1% from 2000 to 2019. • China's medium technology manufacturing are key carbon transfer-in industries. • Metal manufacturing faced the highest embodied CO 2 reduction pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]