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The development and utilization of biomass energy based on the thermochemical conversion of crop biomass to produce hydrogen are of great significance for promoting China's ecological civilization construction, energy revolution, and low-carbon economic development. Henan province is one of the largest agricultural and pasturage provinces in China. Based on the analysis of the status and trends of Henan's biomass energy (BE) development, this paper summarizes the present status of the construction of ecological civilization (CEC) and the factors restricting its development. Challenges in developing biomass energy are analyzed systematically, and strategies and key technical directions for future biomass energy development are discussed. Finally, the paper presents countermeasures and suggestions for CEC based on the development of BE, which will vigorously promote the development and utilization of BE and the process of CEC. This research provides a reference for the further development of BE and CEC in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, global environmental problems such as air pollution and the greenhouse effect have become more and more serious. The utilization of biomass energy not only can promote low-carbon transformation to establish a competitive advantage through value creation under the goals of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality but is also an important force in solving environmental problems. Government subsidy policies play an important role in promoting the development of biomass energy utilization. Taking straw as an example, this paper constructs a straw recycling supply chain system dynamics model consisting of farmers, acquisition stations, power plants, and pyrolysis plants based on a real-world case. Two types of straw processing, namely power generation and pyrolysis, are considered in the model. This paper analyzes the economic and environmental impacts of three subsidy policies, namely the unified rate policy, the linear growth policy, and a two-step policy, by comparing the profit, carbon, and pollution emission reduction benefits of the supply chain under different subsidy scenarios. The result shows that, among the three subsidy policies, the unified rate policy shows the best-promoting effect. The research results and policy implications in this paper could be a reference for governments trying to formulate subsidy policies for developing biomass energy utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Straw, which is characterized by its low cost, large quantity, and rich supply of biomass energy, is often converted into energy that can be utilized in industrial production through pyrolysis technology. This paper examines the pyrolysis experiments of four kinds of straw (rice, wheat, peanut, and corn) from the Henan Province of China, conducted in an air environment with varying temperature-rise rates. Based on the experimental results, an analysis was conducted on the effect of the rate of temperature rise on the degree of straw pyrolysis and the pyrolysis characteristics of each type of straw. The activation energies of the pyrolysis reactions were calculated utilizing the Kissinger–Akahira–Sunose (KAS), Flynn–Wall–Ozawa (FWO), and Starink methods. It was concluded that the pyrolysis process of all four types of straw could roughly be classified into three stages: dehydration and drying stage, volatile release stage, and carbonization stage. Among the four types of straw evaluated, rice straw exhibited the most favorable combustion performance, while wheat straw demonstrated the best pyrolysis effect. Increasing the heating rate resulted in a pronounced thermal hysteresis effect during the straw's pyrolysis, as evidenced by the TG and DTG curves shifting toward higher temperatures. The reaction speed increased as the heating rate increased, and the amount of residual carbon displayed an upward trend. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to present the advances related to the biotechnological application of lipases Y. lipolytica, presenting their properties and more efficient ways to use them in different industrial applications. Waste treatment and bioremediation highlight recent studies and advances and the interest in large-scale applications in the food sector and biofuel production. The USA and China, two major world powers in industy, are of utmost importance in the search for the improvement in the development and properties of a controlled system for the large-scale production of a significant number of applications of lipase from Y. lipolytica. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work investigates the decarbonization potential of large-scale implementation of BECCS (in the form of biomass co-firing and post-combustion amine-based CO2 capture) in over 150 existing coal-fired power plants in China, combining GIS-based geospatial analysis of biomass availability from agricultural residues and modelling of the techno-environmental performance of the retrofitted power plants. Using a 500-m resolution map of cropland in China, the availability of residual biomass at a radius of 25–100 km from each power plant is estimated. The biomass yield is then matched with the required input for a set of co-firing scenarios, identified by the optimal mix of different co-firing ratios (10%, 25%, and 40%) and increasing % of total plant's capacity to be retrofitted with the chosen BECCS system. Power generation performance and required biomass for the retrofitted plants are modelled in the Integrated Environmental Control Model (IECM). According to the results, the total decarbonization potential of the modelled large-scale implementation of BECCS ranges from 0.3 to 1.8 Gt CO2/yr (15–81% of BAU emissions), depending on the biomass collection radius. The Chinese provinces of Shandong, Jiangsu, Anhui, and Henan have the most potential for BECCS implementation, while coal-rich regions (e.g. Inner Mongolia) or highly developed coastal areas (Guangdong, Zhejiang) are constrained by local biomass availability. Overall, this work demonstrates the significant potential of the sustainable large-scale implementation of BECCS in China and provides suggestions to policymakers to include this technology in the portfolio of solutions towards carbon neutrality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to achieve the goal of carbon peaking and carbon neutralization, we must vigorously develop renewable energy. As one of the important renewable energy sources, the development and utilization of biomass energy has a high cost, and it is difficult to compete with traditional fossil energy in the early stage of development. Therefore, it is necessary for the government to escort the development of the biomass energy industry through legal means. First of all, on the basis of fully analyzing the development prospects of China's biomass energy, the article sorts out the laws and regulations related to biomass energy in China, and finds the shortcomings. Secondly, this paper draws on the institutional experience of the United States, Brazil, Sweden and other countries with relatively developed biomass energy industry, and provides suggestions for improvement from three aspects: law, policy and administrative system, with a view to supporting China's development of biomass energy industry and realizing the "dual carbon target" theoretically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering is the property of Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of China Forest Products Industry is the property of China Forest Products Industry Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Purpose: This paper aims to examine the role of off-farm work in the rural residential energy transition in China. Design/methodology/approach: To guide this empirical work, the authors present a simple farm-household model to explain rural energy consumption. The authors then empirically assess three main mechanisms through which off-farm work can speed up energy transition in rural China using panel data methods. Findings: The study shows that income growth from off-farm work can reduce the consumption of traditional biomass energy and facilitate a shift to commercial energy. The losses of labor available for on-farm production raise the shadow price of non-tradable biomass energy and further dampen the demand for traditional biomass energy. More importantly, the authors find that working in service sectors can significantly promote the consumption of commercial energy by rural households. The sectoral exposure effect indicates that a new working environment may influence rural households' energy preferences and thus accelerate the transition away from traditional biomass energy. Originality/value: Previous studies focus mainly on the income effect of off-farm work on rural energy consumption. The authors first identify three related but essentially different effects of off-farm work on rural energy transition in China. This study provides new insights into the process of energy consumption transition in rural China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Clean Coal Technology is the property of Clean Coal Technology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Straw is considered to be a renewable resource for bioenergy and biomaterial. However, about 70% of straw is burned in fields, which causes serious air pollution in China. In this study, a life cycle assessment (LCA) model, together with emergy evaluation, was built to compare four straw applications after harvest vs. direct burning, including bioethanol (BE), combined heat and power plant (CHP), corrugated base paper (CP), and medium-density fiberboard (MDF). The results showed that BE and MDF would avoid greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 82% and 36%, respectively, while CHP and CP would emit 57% and 152% more GHG, respectively, compared with direct straw burning. Bioethanol had the highest renewability indicator (RI) of 47.7%, and MDF obtained the greatest profit of 657 Yuan·bale-1. The applications CHP and CP had low RI (< 10.3%) and profit (< 180 Yuan·bale-1). Due to water recycling and electrical power as a coproduct, BE had the lowest value (3 ? 1011 sej·Yuan-1) of EmPM (emergy per unit money profit); the EmPM value of CP was 18.6 times higher than that of BE. The four straw applications would also greatly reduce particles emission (57 to 98%) to air. BE was judged to be the most environmentally friendly application among the four straw applications. Imposing a carbon tax would encourage investment in BE, but discourage the applications CHP and CP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid growth of passenger vehicles considerably increases greenhouse gas emission and fuel consumption in China. This paper thereby intends to analyze the potentials of the mitigation of energy use and environmental emission in China’s road passenger transportation sector by assessing two available approaches, i.e. biofuel and hybrid vehicle strategies. It was found that biofuel is effective for emission reduction in only three subsubsectors. A synthesis strategy is thereby proposed to meet the state policy goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Distributed energy systems are becoming increasingly popular worldwide. The 100% renewable energy system can be an important energy supply alternative to reduce the carbon emissions and address energy shortage, especially for remote areas. However, the performance of 100% renewable energy system (RES) at community level needs further detailed analysis, which is affected by the climates, availability of renewable energy and local energy markets. This paper proposes a design optimization framework of 100% renewable energy systems for low-density communities and investigates the system performance. To investigate the integration and performance of 100% RES, thirty typical cities located in different regions of China were chosen considering different climates, geographical features, and renewable energy distributions. By taking the economic performance as the optimization objective, the optimal design for the 100% RES is obtained, and the energy and economic performance is analyzed. Results show that, under the current energy market conditions, the 100% RES is feasible for low-density communities in most regions of China. The payback periods of the systems in most cities are less than six years. When the cost of PV is reduced by half considering future technological developments, the payback period of a 100% RES can be reduced by 30%–60%. This paper would provide design suggestions and application recommendations in regard to promoting 100% RES in China. • Application of 100% renewable energy system at community level is studied. • 30 zones are selected considering climates, renewable energy sources and markets. • Solar energy and biomass can contribute to over 90% of the total energy supply. • Investment of 100% RES can be paid back in 6 years for most regions. • Payback periods can be reduced by 30%–60% when PV technology is further developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China has abundant agricultural and forestry waste resources that are crucial sources of energy for substituting fossil fuels and achieving the carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals. These resources play an essential role in reducing carbon dioxide emissions and promoting sustainable development. This paper presents an estimation of the number of biomass resources that can be used for energy in 2020 by using parameters such as the grass-to-grain ratio coefficient and excretion coefficient. Moreover, the potential for conversion of biomass resources into biomass energy is evaluated by using parameters such as lower heating value and gas production coefficient. Finally, based on the whole life cycle theory, the potential of biomass energy utilization to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and its impact on carbon peaking is calculated. It was found that the total amount of fossil fuels that can be replaced by biomass energy is 256 million tons of standard coal. Utilizing biomass energy can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 520 million tons, with a peak impact of 4–6% on carbon peaking. The research results presented in this article can provide valuable data to support the promotion of green transformation in various regions. The findings can serve as a useful reference for formulating localized biomass utilization plans and designing effective emission reduction policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been rapid economic development in China in recent decades, and demand for energy has consequently been increasing rapidly. Development and utilisation of clean and renewable energy has been promoted by the Chinese government to help sustain long-term and stable development. Sugarcane is being increasingly used in several countries as feedstock for renewable energy products, and is a major and expanding crop in southern China. In this paper, we discuss the potential of sugarcane as a feedstock for bioenergy production in China. It includes a review of (1) the existing sugarcane industry in China and key bio-physical factors affecting the extent to which sugarcane-based industries could supply feedstock for renewable energy production in China, (2) the economic and policy factors which are likely to affect production of bioenergy from sugarcane in China, and (3) recommendations on actions and policies that may assist with appropriate development of bioenergy production from sugarcane in China. Existing and expected future economic conditions are unlikely to favour production of biofuel from the sugar component in cane. However, the fibre component of cane remains an under-utilised resource component. A conclusion is made that sugarcane fibre has potential to contribute towards renewable electricity production in China. However, at present, favourable incentives do not exist to encourage this production. It is suggested that policies to facilitate cost-effective production of renewable electricity by sugar mills, consistent with national objectives regarding production of renewable energy, be considered by governments. Priorities for future research are in improving biomass yields per unit area of land and technologies for low-cost conversion of lignocellulosic biomass into biofuel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy consumption and CO2 emissions have been increasing continuously over the past few decades in China and there is a pressing need to replace the fossil fuel‐based economy with an efficient low‐carbon system, tailor‐made to future requirements. China is starting an energy transition with the aim of building an energy system for the future. China has made tremendous progress in increasing the amount of renewable energy and reducing the cost of renewable energy over the last 20 years. According to the 14th 5 year plan, China aims to incorporate 20% of renewable energy to the primary energy mix and attain 27% reduction in CO2 emissions. Bioenergy crops constitute a significant proportion of biomass‐based bioenergy and have recently been promoted by the Chinese Government to help overcome food and fuel conflict. Steps are being taken to promote bioenergy crops on marginal lands in China, and various regions across the country with soil marginality have been evaluated for bioenergy crop cultivation. The present paper reviews the status of bioenergy in China and the potential status of marginal lands from different regions of China. It also elaborates on some of the policies, subsidies and incentives allocated by the Chinese Government for the promotion of biomass‐based energy. Land management and plant improvement strategies were discussed, which are effective in making marginal lands suitable for bioenergy crop cultivation. Managing planting strategies, intercropping and crop rotation are effective management practices used in China for the utilization of marginal lands. A national investigation is desirable for creating an inventory of technical and economic potential of biomass feedstocks that could be planted on marginal lands. This would assist with highlighting the pros and cons of using marginal lands for bioenergy production and effective policy making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global efforts to develop renewable energy include a focus on biofuels, especially algal‐based biofuels. As the world's largest developing country, China is striving to develop a range of renewable energy sources. Here, we performed an informatics analysis to monitor the development of microalgal biofuels in China by analyzing energy policies related to microalgal biomass and biofuel production and funding inputs and scientific research projects in this field. China has already made substantial contributions to the microalgal biofuel industry worldwide. Despite recent declines in research and investment due to the overall economic environment, microalgal energy research and applications technologies have tremendous prospects. We summarize progress in research on microalgal biomass and biofuel production, focusing on microalgal culture patterns and the production of energy, including efforts in China to promote the industrialization of microalgal biofuels. Finally, we explore possible solutions to bottlenecks that must be overcome before microalgal biofuels can be widely used and discuss future prospects. In addition to serving as a theoretical reference for researchers and decision makers in China and beyond, the information presented in this review article can be used to guide the industrialization of microalgal‐based biofuel production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering is the property of Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Accurate short-term prediction of bioenergy power generation structure can optimize the bioenergy structure and help achieve carbon neutrality. However, there are currently few related studies, and most of them present long-term predictions on the development potential of bioenergy, which cannot meet the modeling requirements of predicting structure. Hence, the Fractional-order-accumulation grey Compositional data Model with Particle swarm is proposed in this paper (PFCM (1,1)) for forecasting bioenergy power generation structure. The proposed model satisfies the modeling requirements by introducing the fractional accumulation operator to ensure the prediction accuracy, and constructing the spherical mapping space to reduce the data dimension. The empirical studies prove that the newly developed model performs better than other models, which is successfully employed to predict bioenergy power generation structure of China for 2020–2024. The results show that the share of renewable municipal waste in bioenergy power generation will exceed that of solid biofuels by 2023 and the share of biogas power generation has not changed much. Furthermore, although the total amount of bioenergy power generation in China is growing rapidly, unbalanced development and small share of power are two important challenges. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Minimum volume of straw should be retained in collecting wheat straw in order to obtain sustainable agricultural biomass energy and measure the energy utilization potential of wheat straw when considering ecological balance. Based on relevant literature, this paper calculates the minimum, medium, and maximum volume of wheat straw retention in various types of soil and designs three different scenarios of minimum, medium, and maximum wheat straw retention. Taking Henan province in China as a case, this paper calculates the potential of wheat straw for energy utilization using linear regression method and scenario analysis, with consideration of influencing factors such as the harvest coefficient and combustion ratio of wheat straw. The results show that the energy utilization potential of wheat straw in Henan province in 2020, 2030, 2050 are 13.77, 16.48, 22.54 million tons of coal equivalent (TCEs), respectively, in the minimum retention scenario, assuming that wheat straw is not directly used for combustion. Excessive straw left in the field causes resource waste and produces CH4 and other greenhouse gases. This paper finds that energy potential of wheat straw for energy utilization is limited when ecological balance is considered, however, it is beneficial to the sustainable development of crop biomass energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies ignored the distinction between short, medium, and long term by decomposing macroeconomic variables and human development index at different time scales. We re-visit the causal association between biomass energy (BIO), economic growth (GDP), trade openness (TRO), industrialization (IND), foreign direct investment (FDI), and human development (HDI) in China on a quarterly scale by scale basis for the period 1990 to 2019 using the tools of wavelet, i.e., wavelet correlation, wavelet coherence and scale by scale Granger causality test. The main findings uncover that IND, TRO, GDP, and BIO positively drive the HDI at low and medium frequencies, while FDI negatively impacts HDI during the sample period. Additionally, there is a bidirectional relationship between GDP and HDI at different time and frequency domains. Specifically, we discover that the positive co-movement is more robust in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, particularly for HDI, BIO, GDP, and TRO at medium frequencies throughout the period under research. Our empirical insights have significant implications for achieving human development sustainability in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural household energy consumption is an important component of national energy consumption. This paper explores the rural household energy consumption status and influencing factors on different sources of rural household energy consumption in western China. Using data from a survey of 240 households conducted in 2017, this study finds that rural households' energy consumption structure in the study area is a combination of traditional biomass energy and commercial energy sources. Fuelwood is the most commonly used fuel in the study area, while modern energy sources only occupy a low proportion. Rural household energy consumption is influenced by various factors. Individual perceptions of climate change, social trust and networks, and households' socio-economic and demographic factors (gender, age, education, income per capita, household size, household location, and number of household appliances) are identified as having significant effects on rural households' consumption of biomass and commercial energies. The research results provide implications for policy makers to formulate related rural energy policies to improve the rural energy consumption structure and future energy policy design in China and other developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Problems of Sustainable Development / Problemy Ekorozwoju is the property of Faculty of Environmental Engineering and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Clean Coal Technology is the property of Clean Coal Technology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract In 2017 about 37% of the world's wind turbines and 50% of the world's photovoltaic (PV) panels are installed in China. But at the same time a huge amount of wind power and PV power is wasted mainly because of insufficient flexibility of thermal power which is the dominant source in China's electricity system. This paper aims to assess the flexibility requirements for thermal power plants to accommodate large-scale variable renewable energies (VREs). This paper constructs three scenarios for the reference year of 2030, where VREs account for 16%, 19% and 22% in the electricity system respectively, and simulates corresponding residual load time series (residual load = load − hydropower − nuclear power − wind power − PV power). We find that the current average 1%/min ramp rate of thermal power plants is basically sufficient to deal with ramps in residual load in the future. But the current average 60% minimum load level of thermal power plants has to be improved to 40% or even 30%, otherwise the economic losses of VREs curtailment will be as high as 947.2 × 10 8 – 1632.0 × 10 8 CNY per year in the future. It is necessary and beneficial for the central authority to invest in retrofitting the existing huge thermal power plants to improve their minimum load level. Highlights • This paper simulates the future VREs scenarios for the year of 2030. • 1%/min ramp rate of thermal power is sufficient to follow ramps in residual load. • Minimum load level of thermal power has to be improved to 40% or even 30%. • It is a huge economic benefit to improve minimum load level of thermal power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Many studies have investigated energy utilization of crop straw; however, there has been little analysis in the literature from the perspective of willingness to accept compensation. This study is one of the first studies to introduce the variable trust into the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology, and it mainly the factors influencing rural households' willingness to accept compensation for energy utilization of crop straw. The results show that a certain amount of compensation—approximately 0.95%–1.62% of the average family annual income —encourages households to participate in energy utilization of crop straw. This means that a reasonable compensation standard is an important means of coordinating the relationship between economic development and protection of the natural environment. This paper also finds that, in addition to the factors (time cost expectation , economic cost expectation, influence from persons with high education , influence from persons with high income) in the original Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology model, trust in neighbors, as one aspect of the interpersonal trust, and trust in village cadres, as one aspect of the institutional trust, all exert a significant influence on rural households' willingness to accept. This paper therefore recommends linking energy utilization of crop straw to broader attempts to strengthen trust. Highlights • Rural households' willingness to accept compensation for energy utilization of crop straw is the focus. • Trust is introduced into the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology. • Interpersonal trust and institutional trust significantly influence households' willingness to accept compensation. • Proper compensation helps households adopting energy utilization of crop straw. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Chinese government has made significant effort to promote biomass based electricity generation in recent years. Yet, little is known about consumers’ preferences for biomass electricity and associated environmental impacts. This paper uses discrete choice experiments (DCE) to investigate Chinese consumers’ preference for electricity generated from various biomass sources. Based on 548 responses, the paper finds that Chinese households are willing to pay a premium of around 27 Yuan per month or 0.20 Yuan per kilowatt hour (kWh) to replace coal-fired electricity. Among the various biomass sources, electricity generated from agricultural and forestry biomass is most preferred, followed by biogas electricity and waste-to-energy. It is also found that respondents have a significant willingness to pay for reducing haze. Consumers’ household structure and environmental awareness also affect their preference for biomass electricity. These results have significant implications for the prioritization, design and communication of biomass promoting schemes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to provide a more detailed picture of potential biomass energy production in the Chinese energy system towards 2030 and 2050. Biomass for bioenergy feedstocks comes from five sources, which are agricultural crop residues, forest residues and industrial wood waste, energy crops and woody crops, animal manure, and municipal solid waste. The potential biomass production is predicted based on the resource availability. In the process of identifying biomass resources production, assumptions are made regarding arable land, marginal land, crops yields, forest growth rate, and meat consumption and waste production. Four scenarios were designed to describe the potential biomass energy production to elaborate the role of biomass energy in the Chinese energy system in 2030. The assessment shows that under certain restrictions on land availability, the maximum potential biomass energy productions are estimated to be 18,833 and 24,901 PJ in 2030 and 2050. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main strategies for biomass utilization are the development of biomass-fired power plants, which can minimize the emissions and pollutants from fossil fuels combustion, the improvement of energy density from biomass materials, and the economic development, especially in the rural areas. In the present paper, an economic study of catalytic biomass combustion was carried out to determine the potential of catalysts for CO2capture. The effects of catalyst type and feed input (Mfeed(kg/h)) on CO2concentration and total plant cost (TPC) were studied. Results were showed that on increasing Mfeedfrom 500 kg/h to 2500 kg/h, TPC increases from 2125 kEuro2014to 6428 kEuro2014for CaCO3, from 2270 kEuro2014to 7734 kEuro2014for MgCO3, and from 2410 kEuro2014to 7927 kEuro2014for CaCO3-MgCO3, due to an enhancement in the size of burner with increasing Mfeed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study aims to analyze the risk spillover effects between the global crude oil market and the biofuel ethanol and corn markets in China, employing a DCC-GARCH-Copula-CoVaR model and basing the weekly price data from 2012 to 2021. The empirical results revealed that there were dynamic conditional correlations among international crude oil, China's biofuel ethanol, and corn markets. Following the COVID-19 outbreak, the CoVaR and ΔCoVaR changed, which caused a sharp increase in the mean values and volatility. Additionally, China's biofuel ethanol market is more vulnerable to the risk spillovers from the international crude oil market than China's corn market. However, China's markets do not appear to have obvious risk spillover effects on the global market. The implications of the results are discussed in financial market supervision, including the risk management and portfolio adjustment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Black carbon (BC) aerosols have a considerable impact on humans because they not only cause environmental pollution and reduce visibility but also harm human health. During the heating season in northern China, a large amount of coal is burned for heating, producing a large amount of BC. There are few studies on BC properties during the heating season. In this paper, BC is measured optically, so it is referred to as equivalent black carbon (EBC). This paper investigated EBC properties in depth during the heating and nonheating seasons of a typical urban environment in China with two years of EBC measurements. The results show that: (1) EBC aerosol concentrations during the heating season were significantly higher than those during the nonheating season. (2) The main sources of EBC aerosols throughout the year are liquid sources. During the heating season, solid sources (coal and biomass combustion) are dominant. (3) The proportion of brown carbon (BrC) produced by biomass energy during the heating season is greater than that during the nonheating season. (4) The resulting backward trajectory indicates that a large portion of the high EBC aerosol concentration sources originate from northern and northwestern China. Our results reveal that the characteristics and sources of EBC in the urban environment of northern China vary widely, suggesting that different measures should be taken to reduce BC aerosol concentrations during heating and nonheating seasons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes the network data envelopment analysis (DEA) model accounting for negative externalities and applies it for decomposition of profit inefficiency in the biomass-agriculture circular system (Bio-AG system). A circular structure of the Bio-AG system which is different from the previously applied network structures is assumed. Since the negative externalities (i.e., pollutant emissions from the biomass industry) occur in the Bio-AG system, the property rights are taken into consideration to model the externalities-adjusted profits. Therefore, the changes in profits due to changes in the property rights (assuming no property rights, allocating property rights to agricultural sector, and allocating property rights to biomass power generation sector) are quantified. Further, the decomposition shows that the biomass power generation sector is less affected by technical inefficiency if contrasted to allocative inefficiency in terms of the profit loss. The findings suggest that the biomass power generation technology influences the profits of the biomass industry. What is more, the inefficient allocation of resources is now the key factor undermining performance of the biomass industry. Therefore, the government should adopt measures to improve the allocation of resources and prevent excessive investments or development of less efficient technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Agricultural Science & Technology (1008-0864) is the property of Journal of Agricultural Science & Technology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract: With increasing attention on energy shortage and global warming, bioenergy is a promising alternative energy to mitigate CO 2 emissions. Despite the environmental friendly potential, a certain quantity of bioenergy-related CO 2 is still emitted in China. This paper investigates the temporal dynamics of bioenergy-related CO 2 emissions in 2000–2010 in China, and explores the underlying influence factors based on logarithmic mean Divisia index (LMDI). Then the core results are verified with a GIS-based approach from a spacial perspective. The results show that four impact factors: emission intensity, energy structure, energy efficiency and economic development have different impacts on bioenergy-related CO 2 emissions, of which economic development is the major factor contributing to its increase, while energy efficiency is the major determinant for the decline. Per capita bioenergy-related CO 2 emissions in different areas are verified in accordance with either economic development factor or energy efficiency factor to some extent. To achieve the dual purpose of sustainable development and CO 2 emissions reduction, this paper provides a practical policy framework for rural bioenergy and economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a useful alternative to petroleum-based fuel, biofuels are playing an increasingly important role due to their economic, environmental, and social benefits. Cassava is viewed as an important and highly attractive nonedible feedstock for the production of biofuels. In this paper, a game-theoretic approach is proposed to explore decision behavior within a cassava-based bioethanol supply chain under the condition of yield uncertainty. In addition, a production cost sharing contract is proposed to overcome the double marginalization effect due to competition between supply chain players. With data from China's cassava-based bioethanol industry, the paper analyzes the effects of the farmer's capacity, risk aversion, yield uncertainty, the conversion ratio, the bioethanol's market price and ethanol plant's operation cost on optimal decisions within the supply chain and its overall performance. In addition, the effectiveness of the proposed production cost sharing contract is tested, and the results show that it can enhance the supply of cassava, increase the utility of the whole supply chain and reduce the level of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The implications are set out for policy makers regarding how to promote the development of the biofuel industry, to guarantee the supply of feedstock, to reduce GHG emissions and to promote rural development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chinese herbal medicine has a long history spanning more than 2000 years, and it is widely used to prevent and treat diseases in China and even in Southeast Asia. Given the popularity of Chinese herbal medicine and the continuous development of the pharmaceutical industry, large amounts of Chinese medicine residues are produced in China every year. Chinese medicine residues are mainly made up of medicinal plant materials intended for human utilization that are subsequently discharged, lost, degraded or contaminated. The traditional methods of disposal of Chinese medicine residues include incineration, stacking and burying. However, these methods not only affect the ecological environment but also cause a great waste of Chinese medicine residues. In the past few years, the utilization of Chinese medicine residues for industry and environment protection has aroused widespread concern. Extensive studies have explored Chinese medicine residues, especially with regard to energy generation applications. In this work, the origin, chemical composition and potential of Chinese medicine residues in terms of energy generation, paper making, composite material preparation, re-extraction of bioactive components and environmental protection are summarized. This review is aimed at providing an overview of the current progress on the utilization of Chinese medicine residues for industry and environment protection and discussing the existing problems and future development. • Developing biomass energy is a promising solution for Chinese medicine residue. • Chinese medicine residue is a potential material for producing paper and composite. • Re-extraction of bioactive components is necessary for Chinese medicine residue. • Chinese medicine residue can be used to curb environmental pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we develop an agent-based model to explore a feasible way of simultaneously providing sufficient food and bioenergy feedstocks in China. Concerns over the competition for agricultural land resources between food and bioenergy supply hinder the further development of bioenergy, especially in China, the country that needs tofeed the world's largest population. Prior research has suggested the introduction of energy crops and reviewed the resulting agricultural land use change in China. However, there is a lack of quantitative studies which estimate the value, contribution, and impact of bioenergy for specific conditions at the county level and provide adequate information to guide local practices. Tofill this gap, we choose the Jiangsu Province in China as a case study, build up a spatial-agent dynamic model of agricultural land use, and perform a sensitivity analysis for important parameters. The simulation results show that straw from conventional crops generally dominates Jiangsu's biomass supply with a contribution above 85%. The sensitivity analyses reveal severe consequences of bioenergy targets for local land use. For Jiangsu Province, reclaimed mudflats, an alternative to arable lands for energy crop plantation, help to secure the local biomass supply and to alleviate the land use conflict between food and biomass production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the most important renewable and sustainable energy sources, the forest biomass energy resource has always been the focus of attention of scholars and policy makers. However, its potential is still uncertain in China, especially with respect to its spatial distribution. In this paper, the quantity and distribution of Chinese forest biomass energy resources are explored based mainly on forestry statistics data rather than forest resource inventory data used by most previous studies. The results show that the forest biomass energy resource in China was 169 million tons in 2010, of which wood felling and bucking residue (WFBR),wood processing residue (WPR), bamboo processing residue, fuel wood and firewood used by farmers accounted for 38%, 37%, 6%, 4% and 15%, respectively. The highest resource was located in East China, accounting for nearly 39.0% of the national amount, followed by the Southwest and South China regions, which accounted for 17.4% and 16.3%, respectively. At the provincial scale, Shandong has the highest distribution, accounting for 11.9% of total resources, followed by Guangxi and Fujian accounting for 10.3% and 10.2%, respectively. The actual wood-processing residue (AWPR) estimated from the actual production of different wood products (considering the wood transferred between regions) showed apparent differences from the local wood processing residue (LWPR), which assumes that no wood has been transferredbetween regions. Due to the large contribution of WPR to total forestry bioenergy resources, the estimation of AWPR will provide a more accurate evaluation of the total amount and the spatial distribution of forest biomass energy resources in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biomass energy is one of the most important renewable energy sources. Full utilization of this energy helps to optimize agricultural development, improve our living environment, and replace some non-renewable energy sources, thereby promoting the eco-environment across the country. However, biomass energy has not been extensively utilized in rural areas of China. Many farmers are not very enthusiastic about the use of biomass energy. Many scholars have tried to boost the willingness of farmers to utilize biomass energy. Therefore, this paper collects the relevant data from six aspects, namely, environmental factor, cost factor, income factor, behavior factor, policy factor, and personal factor, and constructs a binary logistic regression model. On this basis, the driving and influencing factors of biomass energy utilization were empirically analyzed from the perspective of farmers. The results show that the development of biomass energy is mainly affected by the farmers' awareness of national energy strategy, the relevant costs of biomass utilization, and the attitude of family members and village committee. The research provides an important reference for further promotion of biomass energy, elevation of its utilization efficiency, and optimization of energy structure in rural China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are abundant crop straws in Chinese rural areas, but they are loose structure, low energy density and scattered distribution. Biomass densification technology is one of the effective ways to solve these problems. So the paper proposes a novel distributed heating/centralized monitoring mode of the biomass briquette fuel for rural areas. The mode includes the energy service station, the internet platform and the farmer households. A bidirectional C2S (Customer to Supplier) relationship between the energy service station and the farmer households is formed. The biomass briquette fuels are bartered using the crop straws instead of using money between the farmer households and the energy service station. The optimal service radius is calculated in different climate rons. The results are 4.75 km in extremely cold ron, 1.71 km in cold plain ron, 2.36 km in cold mountain ron. The use-scale of 1000 households is regarded as the standard for the promotion and application of the mode. The sensitivity analysis is that briquetting cost is the peak. At last, some suggestions are proposed, which will promote the future development of the briquette heating in China. • A mode of distributed heating/centralized monitoring is proposed in China. • A bidirectional C2S (Customer to Supplier) relationship is formed. • The optimal use-scale and optimal radius of the mode are calculated. • The "Internet + biomass energy network" is builds in rural area. • Some policies are suggested for the further development of biomass heating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a major technical route to utilize biomass energy, biomass combustion power generation (BCPG) has been shown to be of environmental and economic significance. According to the operating experience, the installed capacity has a decisive impact on the operation and economic return of BCPG projects. In China, an installed capacity of either 30 MW or 12 MW is often chosen for constructing a BCPG project. To explore which one is more suitable for China, this paper uses actual operating data to compare the operation performance and techno-economics of two representative BCPG projects with an installed capacity of 30 MW and 12 MW. The results show that the operation situation and electricity production of the 30 MW project are better than those of the 12 MW project. The 30 MW project has a lower biomass consumption than the 12 MW project to produce per unit of electricity. The Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of the 30 MW project is greater than the industry benchmark in China and is almost three times the IRR of the 12 MW project. Therefore, it is recommended to construct BCPG projects with installed capacity of 30 MW in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rapid progress of socio-economic development and urbanization in China, a wide variety of literature has focused on the phenomenon of energy-consumption disparity, which in turn could be related to numerous fundamental energy dilemmas that China must deal with now or soon, including energy use inefficiency, regional energy shortage, insufficient use of green energy, etc. However, in most cases, only a tendency scenario is discussed, while identifying which factors are more likely to affect the improvement of energy supply/use has not yet been fully explored. Therefore, this paper attempts to explore differences in energy consumption in specific, household-level aspects. Based on the information provided by Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS2015), the Gini coefficient and the Lorentz asymmetry coefficient are used to measure the difference among various categories of energy type and end use within and between different geographical sub-groups. The findings show that: (1) household energy-consumption behaviors exhibit a complicated effect on the overall level of energy-consumption difference; (2) from the supply side, energy users show the most significant difference in biomass energy consumption, while from the demand side, the contribution of space heating to the difference in total energy consumption is the highest; (3) a great urban–rural difference in energy consumption is generally observed with its difference within rural areas being much greater than in urban areas; (4) the eastern, middle and western regions weight differently in explaining the overall difference of energy consumption. These findings provide meaningful materials and references for policymakers in China to understand the overall situation of individual energy consumption to a great extent, and to locate key points to reform the current energy policy framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bioenergy can be a promising solution to the energy, food and environment trilemma in China. Currently this coal-dependent nation is in urgent need of alternative fuels to secure its future energy and improve the environment. Biofuels derived from crop residues and bioenergy crops emerge as a great addition to renewable energy in China without compromising food production. This paper reviews bioenergy resources from existing conventional crop (e.g., corn, wheat and rice) residues and energy crops (e.g., Miscanthus ) produced on marginal lands. The impacts of biofuel production on ecosystem services are also discussed in the context of biofuel's life cycle. It is estimated that about 280 million metric tons (Mt) of crop residue-based biomass (or 65 Mt of ethanol) and over 150 Mt of energy crop-based ethanol can become available each year, which far exceeds current national fuel ethanol production (< 2 Mt year −1 ) and the 2020 national target of 10 Mt year −1 . Review on environmental impacts suggested that substituting fossil fuels with biofuels could significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution (e.g., particulate matter). However, the impacts of biofuel production on biodiversity, water quantity and quality vary greatly among biomass types, land sources and management practices. Improved agricultural management and landscape planning can be beneficial to ecosystem services. A national investigation is desirable in China to inventory technical and economic potential of biomass feedstocks and evaluate the impacts of biofuel production on ecosystem services and the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transportation liquid fuels production is heavily depend on oil. In recent years, developing biomass based and coal based fuels are regarded as promising alternatives for non-petroleum based fuels in China. With the rapid growth of constructing and planning b biomass based and coal based fuels production projects, sustainability assessments are needed to simultaneously consider the resource, the economic, and the environmental factors. This paper performs multi-scale analyses on the biomass based and coal based fuels in China. The production cost, life cycle cost, and ecological life cycle cost (ELCC) of these synfuels are investigated to compare their pros to cons and reveal the sustainability. The results show that BTL fuels has high production cost. It lacks of economic attractiveness. However, insignificant resource cost and environmental cost lead to a substantially lower ELCC, which may indicate better ecological sustainability. CTL fuels, on the contrary, is lower in production cost and reliable for economic benefit. But its coal consumption and pollutant emissions are both serious, leading to overwhelming resource cost and environmental cost. A shifting from petroleum to CTL fuels could double the ELCC, posing great threat to the sustainability of the entire fuels industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With rapid economic development and tremendous population growth, emerging economies are facing huge pressure to conserve energy and reduce emissions. Although governmental authorities have formulated numerous relevant policies, a considerable number of farmers have yet to actively take energy-saving measures. Consequently, it is imperative to investigate how institutions (i.e., environmental regulations and informal institutions) affect the clean energy utilization behaviors (CEUBs) of farmers (e.g., biomass energy, natural gas, and solar energy) for better aligning governance strategies. Drawing on institutional theory, we explore the underlying influencing mechanisms of the institutional constraints on farmers' CEUBs using survey data collected from Central China. The double hurdle model results reveal that both environmental regulations (e.g., incentivizing regulations, binding regulations) and informal institutions (e.g., value orientation) have positive impacts on farmers' adoption of CEUBs. Informal institutions were found to have stronger influences on farmers' CEUBs than formal regulations. Interestingly, the interactions between two institutional constraints primarily have substitutionary effects on the natural gas and solar energy using behaviors of farmers. The interaction effects of the two institutional constraints on biomass energy using behavior are complementary. Consequently, this study sheds new light on guiding farmer CEUBs and better aligning formal and informal energy strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent times, there has been a growing demand for the use of biomass as an alternative energy due to its sustainable nature. At present, anaerobic digestion and gasification has been proven as a promising technology for exploiting this energy from biomass. This review aims to provide a comprehensive and detailed analysis of the combination of anaerobic and gasification technology as a hybrid system for sustainable waste-to-energy generation. This review reveals that both anaerobic digestion and biomass gasification have been successfully demonstrated as technologies for energy recovery. However, to improve the conversion efficiency in both technologies, the utilization of an intensifier, additive, and enhancer will be required. Moreover, temperature has been identified as a major factor affecting the technologies and should be considered. The bibliometric study conducted revealed that China is the leading country and has set the pace for other countries to follow suit. Subsequently, waste-to-energy research could be easily implemented on a global scale. This study recommends an experimental study of anaerobic digestion and gasification as a hybrid system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lignocellulosic biomasses are used in several applications, such as energy production, materials, and biofuels. These applications result in increased consumption and waste generation of these materials. However, alternative uses are being developed to solve the problem of waste generated in the industry. Thus, research is carried out to ensure the use of these biomasses as enzymatic support. These surveys can be accompanied using the advanced bibliometric analysis tool that can help determine the biomasses used and other perspectives on the subject. With this, the present work aims to carry out an advanced bibliometric analysis approaching the main studies related to the use of lignocellulosic biomass as an enzymatic support. This study will be carried out by highlighting the main countries/regions that carry out productions, research areas that involve the theme, and future trends in these areas. It was observed that there is a cooperation between China, USA, and India, where China holds 28.07% of publications in this area, being the country with the greatest impact in the area. Finally, it is possible to define that the use of these new supports is a trend in the field of biotechnology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural household energy consumption is an important component of national energy consumption and plays an important role in rural social and ecological environment developments. In this paper, energy consumption of 1440 households in 8 typical counties of 8 China's economic zones was investigated. The investigation data analysis revealed significant difference of different economic zones in rural household energy consumption level and structure. For 8 studying counties, the annual average energy consumption per capita was 26.7 GJ, 10.4 GJ the lowest (Shanghang County) and 86.6 GJ the highest (Shulan County). In energy consumption, straw, biogas, fuel wood and electricity accounted for 44.33%, 23.13%, 12.79% and 9.61%, respectively. Rural families with high incomes preferred commercial energies (e.g. electricity and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)) to biomass energy (e.g. straw and fuel wood). The traditional biomass energy is still the main energy source for China's rural household. Research results provide references to understand current situations and future development of China's rural household energy consumption, and formulate related energy and environmental policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]