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To investigate the impact of solar energy on the carbon footprint, to find effective measures to reduce the carbon footprint and slow global warming as soon as possible, this paper takes 30 provinces in China as an example. First, the inter‐regional input–output model is used to calculate the carbon footprint of each province. Then, the panel quantile regression model is used to investigate the impact of solar energy generation on different quantiles of carbon footprint. The results show that from 2012 to 2020, China's carbon footprint is at a high level, which is not conducive to the achievement of the goal of peaking carbon dioxide emissions. The eastern region has the highest carbon footprint, followed by the western region, the central region has the lowest carbon footprint, and its carbon footprint proportion continues to decline. The increase of solar energy generation can significantly reduce the carbon footprint of high quantile location, but has no significant impact on the carbon footprint of the middle and low quantile locations. Except for the negative impact of afforestation area on carbon footprint, the others control variables are all positive. Therefore, to reduce the carbon footprint of China, it is necessary to upgrade solar technology, increase solar energy generation, reduce energy consumption per unit of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) and the share of coal consumption, strengthen forestry management and reduce reliance on private vehicles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the concept of carbon asset is still new to most power enterprises, they generally lack the knowledge and experience of carbon asset management, to help them cope with the related works, this paper proposes a carbon footprint tracking and quantitative analysis model for power enterprises based on thermodynamics. At first, by employing thermodynamic theories, this paper established an inventory model through the measurement and calculation of carbon concentration and carbon emissions, which can fix defective items, improve inventory efficiency, and save inventory cost. Then, the paper used thermo-economics and the TOPSIS method to construct a carbon inventory index system containing indexes such as carbon exergy ratio and regulation interval, which can reduce the error of carbon emission intensity and update the carbon account information in a timely manner. After that, the carbon footprint was calculated by coupling the carbon thermal map with the multi-dimensional evaluation mechanism, thereby achieving accurate control of carbon emissions and realizing the energy-saving and emissionreduction goals. At last, the attained experimental results showed that, the proposed carbon inventory measurement model established based on thermodynamics can effectively regulate the emission behavior of power enterprises, help achieve the ultimate purposes of reducing cost, increasing efficiency, and optimizing environment. The work done in this paper could provide theoretical support for making decisions for the smooth development of carbon rights market in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of global warming, agriculture, as the second-largest source of greenhouse gas emissions after industry, had attracted widespread attention from all walks of life to reduce agricultural emissions. The carbon footprint of the planting production system of the Heilongjiang Land Reclamation Area (HLRA), an important commodity grain base in China, was evaluated and analyzed in this paper. On this basis, this paper sought feasible strategies to reduce carbon emissions from two aspects: agronomic practices and cropping structure adjustment, which were particularly crucial to promote the low-carbon and sustainable development of agriculture in HLRA. Therefore, using the accounting methods in IPCC and Low Carbon Development and Guidelines for the Preparation of Provincial Greenhouse Gas Inventories compiled by the Chinese government, relevant data were collected from 2000 to 2017 in HLRA and accounted for the carbon emissions of the planting production system in four aspects: carbon emissions from agricultural inputs, N2O emissions from managed soils, CH4 emissions from rice cultivation and straw burning emissions. Then carbon uptake consisted of seeds and straws. Finally, with farmers' incomes were set as the objective function and carbon emissions per unit of gross production value was set as the constraint, this paper simulated and optimized the cropping structure in HLRA. The results showed that there was a "stable-growing-declining" trend in the total carbon emissions and carbon uptake of the planting production system in HLRA, with total carbon emissions of 2.84x1010 kg and total carbon uptake of 7.49x1010 kg in 2017. In the past 18 years, carbon emissions per unit area and carbon emissions per unit of gross production had both shown a decreasing trend. To achieve further efficiency gains and emission reductions in the planting production system, it was recommended that the local governments strengthen the comprehensive use of straw resources, optimize irrigation and fertilization techniques, and adjust the cropping structure, i.e., increase the planting area of maize and soybeans and reduce the planting area of rice, and increase subsidies to protect the economic returns of planters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the promulgation and implementation of China's 'carbon peak' and 'carbon neutrality' policies, the evaluation of the carbon footprint of the domestic catering industry is particularly important. Currently, comparative studies on the life-cycle carbon footprint of different common dining styles, such as home cooking, restaurant dining and takeaway, are scarce. Focused on three dining methods, this paper involved in-depth research on carbon footprint of the whole life cycle from the perspectives of whole industry and specific dish. The carbon footprint contribution of each stage of three different dining ways is obtained from the four stages, namely, the stage of upstream raw materials and manufactures, the stage of platform empowerment, the stage of consumer dining and the stage of waste treatment. The study found that the carbon emissions of the three dining ways in the overall industry analysis were canteen (2.9564 kgCO2e/per person) > takeaway (2.4821 kgCO2e/per person) > home cooking (2.2778 kgCO2e/per person); and the carbon emissions of honey sauce fork-fired were canteen (6.5843 kgCO2e/per person) > home cooking (6.4721 kgCO2e/per person) > takeaway (5.6718 kgCO2e/per person). The production of raw materials and products is the largest stage of carbon emissions among the three dining ways. Besides the carbon emissions of raw materials, the storage and cooking of food products are the unit processes with large carbon emissions. According to the results of sensitivity analysis, traffic travel mode is an important factor affecting the carbon footprint of canteen food. The above research can provide effective basis and data support for policy formulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing contribution of refrigeration systems to global warming has led to widespread demand for low global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants as alternatives. This paper proposed a comprehensive environmental assessment method for evaluating the carbon footprint of units charged with low-GWP refrigeration. Experimental and numerical studies were used to investigate the carbon footprint impact of using alternative refrigerants at different ambient temperatures in China. Initially, the model was validated through experimental case studies on the use stage of cold storage units. Subsequently, a comparison was made between the cooling capacity (CC) and energy efficiency ratio (EER) of cold storage units charged with different refrigerants. Additionally, the impact of alternative refrigerants in the use stage was analyzed by numerical calculations, and the adaptability of the cold storage unit to the ambient temperature and the national energy structure was also studied. The results indicate that among the four stages of the cold storage unit, the use stage is the hotspot of carbon footprint due to the large amount of energy consumption and the existence of refrigerant leakage and other behaviors. Utilizing low-GWP alternative refrigerants could significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the cold storage units' use stage by 10.56%–16.39%, thereby lowering the whole stage carbon footprint. Furthermore, the ambient temperature and national energy structure could also effectively reduce the carbon footprint of cold storage units' whole stage by 1%–27.17%. Furthermore, after adopting low GWP refrigerants, the life-cycle cost (LCC) of the units have also decreased by 6.1%–12%. Taking into account both environmental impact and economic considerations, it is recommended to directly replace R404A with R448A in the units in regions where the average ambient temperature is above 15 °C. • A carbon footprint evaluation model for the units was established. • Influencing factors of carbon footprint are studied numerically and experimentally. • By GHG assessments, the optimal refrigerant and external conditions were determined. • Alternative refrigerants reduce carbon emissions for cold storage units by 8.8%–24.92%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Impact-based water footprint of rolled steel production is first performed. • Fossil energy footprint and carbon footprint are evaluated by using LCA. • Maritime transport, iron power and direct emissions are major contributors. • Adjustment of industrial structure is essential for carbon mitigation of steel industry. The Iron and Steel Industry (ISI) is a difficult-to-mitigate sector that has considerable contributions to energy consumption, water pollution, and CO 2 emissions. Despite broad interest in energy consumption and CO 2 emissions generated by steel production, there are few impact-oriented Water Footprint (WF) assessments of steel production. This study evaluates the water, carbon and fossil energy footprints generated from rolled steel production on the basis of life cycle assessment. Key contributors attributing to those environmental impacts are also identified so as to explore their potential mitigation. Using the Monte Carlo model, an uncertainty analysis is conducted with the aim of providing reliable results for decision-making. Results show that the impact per ton China's rolled steel production has on global warming, human health, ecosystem quality, and resources is 4.40 × 103 kg CO 2 eq (GSD2 = 1.24), 4.15 × 10-3 Disability Adjusted of Life Years (DALY) (GSD2 = 1.31), 7.08 × 10-5 Species·yr (GSD2 = 2.04), and 4.39 × 104 MJ (GSD2 = 1.28), respectively. Global warming and freshwater ecotoxicity is the dominant contributor to the damage impact on human health and ecosystem quality, respectively. Results also show that the transport (freight ship) of raw materials and the production of iron powder are the two main contributors to the overall impact on the environment that rolled steel production has. Several policy recommendations are proposed in this paper, which focus on adjusting the steel industry's industrial structure, promoting the national-level carbon emissions trading in the ISI, promoting international cooperation, and improving public awareness of green and low-carbon development. Such policy recommendations provide decision-makers with valuable insights, which thus allow them to prepare the appropriate mitigation policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]