IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/rensus/v147y2021ics1364032121005426.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Comprehensive comparison of multiple renewable power generation methods: A combination analysis of life cycle assessment and ecological footprint

Author

Listed:
  • Gao, Chengkang
  • Zhu, Sulong
  • An, Nan
  • Na, Hongming
  • You, Huan
  • Gao, Chengbo

Abstract

As the goal of carbon neutrality has been proposed consecutively, renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, and bioenergy are gaining close attention in national strategic and sustainable development plans. Along with the development of renewable energy generation technologies, it is necessary to assess the environmental burden of renewable energy generation. This study analyzed the economic and environmental benefits of wind power, solar power, and biomass power generation methods over their life cycle. This paper comprehensively assessed and compared their environmental impacts based on a life cycle assessment (LCA) framework combined with ecological footprint analysis for the three renewable energy generation in China, and compared the results with those of thermal power generation to make strategic suggestions for the renewable energy power generation industry. The results show that: (1) wind power consumed the least energy, only 6.80 kJ/kW·h, and had the lowest emissions of CO2, SO2, NOx and CO and environmental impact potential. (2) Based on the ecological footprint analysis on the provincial level, only Anhui, Shandong and Jiangsu provinces showed ecological deficits, while the other provinces were in ecological surplus, mostly above 50% of their ecological areas. (3) Compared to thermal power generation, which consumed 1170.911 kJ/kW·h, wind power was the only one of the three renewable energy achieved a reduction in energy consumption. Wind power is currently the most efficient way of generating renewable energy.

Suggested Citation

  • Gao, Chengkang & Zhu, Sulong & An, Nan & Na, Hongming & You, Huan & Gao, Chengbo, 2021. "Comprehensive comparison of multiple renewable power generation methods: A combination analysis of life cycle assessment and ecological footprint," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 147(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:147:y:2021:i:c:s1364032121005426
    DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2021.111255
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364032121005426
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.rser.2021.111255?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Su, Yujie & Song, Kaihui & Zhang, Peidong & Su, Yuqing & Cheng, Jing & Chen, Xiao, 2017. "Progress of microalgae biofuel’s commercialization," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 402-411.
    2. Udomsirichakorn, Jakkapong & Salam, P. Abdul, 2014. "Review of hydrogen-enriched gas production from steam gasification of biomass: The prospect of CaO-based chemical looping gasification," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 565-579.
    3. Destek, Mehmet & Sinha, Avik, 2020. "Renewable, non-renewable energy consumption, economic growth, trade openness and ecological footprint: Evidence from organisation for economic Co-operation and development countries," MPRA Paper 104246, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2020.
    4. Hondo, Hiroki, 2005. "Life cycle GHG emission analysis of power generation systems: Japanese case," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 30(11), pages 2042-2056.
    5. Song, Shizhong & Liu, Pei & Xu, Jing & Chong, Chinhao & Huang, Xianzheng & Ma, Linwei & Li, Zheng & Ni, Weidou, 2017. "Life cycle assessment and economic evaluation of pellet fuel from corn straw in China: A case study in Jilin Province," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 373-381.
    6. Beagle, E. & Belmont, E., 2019. "Comparative life cycle assessment of biomass utilization for electricity generation in the European Union and the United States," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 267-275.
    7. Kumar, Indraneel & Tyner, Wallace E. & Sinha, Kumares C., 2016. "Input–output life cycle environmental assessment of greenhouse gas emissions from utility scale wind energy in the United States," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 89(C), pages 294-301.
    8. Tremeac, Brice & Meunier, Francis, 2009. "Life cycle analysis of 4.5Â MW and 250Â W wind turbines," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 13(8), pages 2104-2110, October.
    9. Yu, Zhiqiang & Ma, Wenhui & Xie, Keqiang & Lv, Guoqiang & Chen, Zhengjie & Wu, Jijun & Yu, Jie, 2017. "Life cycle assessment of grid-connected power generation from metallurgical route multi-crystalline silicon photovoltaic system in China," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 185(P1), pages 68-81.
    10. Lo, Shirleen Lee Yuen & How, Bing Shen & Leong, Wei Dong & Teng, Sin Yong & Rhamdhani, Muhammad Akbar & Sunarso, Jaka, 2021. "Techno-economic analysis for biomass supply chain: A state-of-the-art review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 135(C).
    11. Wang, Like & Wang, Yuan & Du, Huibin & Zuo, Jian & Yi Man Li, Rita & Zhou, Zhihua & Bi, Fenfen & Garvlehn, McSimon P., 2019. "A comparative life-cycle assessment of hydro-, nuclear and wind power: A China study," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 249(C), pages 37-45.
    12. Bonou, Alexandra & Laurent, Alexis & Olsen, Stig I., 2016. "Life cycle assessment of onshore and offshore wind energy-from theory to application," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 180(C), pages 327-337.
    13. Al-Mulali, Usama & Ozturk, Ilhan, 2015. "The effect of energy consumption, urbanization, trade openness, industrial output, and the political stability on the environmental degradation in the MENA (Middle East and North African) region," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 382-389.
    14. Zhang, Shijie & Wei, Jing & Chen, Xi & Zhao, Yuhao, 2020. "China in global wind power development: Role, status and impact," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    15. Ji, Shiyu & Chen, Bin, 2016. "Carbon footprint accounting of a typical wind farm in China," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 180(C), pages 416-423.
    16. Wackernagel, Mathis & Onisto, Larry & Bello, Patricia & Callejas Linares, Alejandro & Susana Lopez Falfan, Ina & Mendez Garcia, Jesus & Isabel Suarez Guerrero, Ana & Guadalupe Suarez Guerrero, Ma., 1999. "National natural capital accounting with the ecological footprint concept," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(3), pages 375-390, June.
    17. He, Jiaxin & Liu, Ying & Lin, Boqiang, 2018. "Should China support the development of biomass power generation?," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 163(C), pages 416-425.
    18. Gao, Cheng-kang & Na, Hong-ming & Song, Kai-hui & Dyer, Noel & Tian, Fan & Xu, Qing-jiang & Xing, Yu-hong, 2019. "Environmental impact analysis of power generation from biomass and wind farms in different locations," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 307-317.
    19. Desideri, U. & Zepparelli, F. & Morettini, V. & Garroni, E., 2013. "Comparative analysis of concentrating solar power and photovoltaic technologies: Technical and environmental evaluations," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 765-784.
    20. Hou, Guofu & Sun, Honghang & Jiang, Ziying & Pan, Ziqiang & Wang, Yibo & Zhang, Xiaodan & Zhao, Ying & Yao, Qiang, 2016. "Life cycle assessment of grid-connected photovoltaic power generation from crystalline silicon solar modules in China," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 164(C), pages 882-890.
    21. Li, Jianglong & Huang, Jiashun, 2020. "The expansion of China's solar energy: Challenges and policy options," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 132(C).
    22. Li, Qiangfeng & Duan, Huabo & Xie, Minghui & Kang, Peng & Ma, Yi & Zhong, Ruoyu & Gao, Tianming & Zhong, Weiqiong & Wen, Bojie & Bai, Feng & Vuppaladadiyam, Arun K., 2021. "Life cycle assessment and life cycle cost analysis of a 40 MW wind farm with consideration of the infrastructure," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    23. Oebels, Kerstin B. & Pacca, Sergio, 2013. "Life cycle assessment of an onshore wind farm located at the northeastern coast of Brazil," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 60-70.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Wei Sun & Junli Li & Wenxi Qu, 2022. "Sustainability evolution and factors based on ecological footprint: A case study of Rizhao, China," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(1), pages 132-150, March.
    2. Luo, Shihua & Hu, Weihao & Liu, Wen & Zhang, Zhenyuan & Bai, Chunguang & Huang, Qi & Chen, Zhe, 2022. "Study on the decarbonization in China's power sector under the background of carbon neutrality by 2060," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 166(C).
    3. Damien Guilbert & Gianpaolo Vitale, 2021. "Hydrogen as a Clean and Sustainable Energy Vector for Global Transition from Fossil-Based to Zero-Carbon," Clean Technol., MDPI, vol. 3(4), pages 1-29, December.
    4. Gilbert Ahamer, 2022. "Why Biomass Fuels Are Principally Not Carbon Neutral," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(24), pages 1-39, December.
    5. Haicheng Jia & Ling Liang & Jiqing Xie & Jianyun Zhang, 2022. "Environmental Effects of Technological Improvements in Polysilicon Photovoltaic Systems in China—A Life Cycle Assessment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-18, July.
    6. Katarzyna Klimkiewicz & Anna Dubel & Katarzyna Południak-Gierz, 2023. "Supporting Environmentally Conscious Consumer Sales Law by Life-cycle Thinking," Contemporary Economics, University of Economics and Human Sciences in Warsaw., vol. 17(2), June.
    7. Scott, Connor & Ahsan, Mominul & Albarbar, Alhussein, 2023. "Machine learning for forecasting a photovoltaic (PV) generation system," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 278(C).
    8. Joof, Foday & Samour, Ahmed & Ali, Mumtaz & Tursoy, Turgut & Haseeb, Mohammad & Hossain, Md. Emran & Kamal, Mustafa, 2023. "Symmetric and asymmetric effects of gold, and oil price on environment: The role of clean energy in China," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    9. Larisa D. Petrenko & Bahodirhon Sh. Safarov, 2022. "Prospects for Nuclear Energy in the Framework of Implementation of the Sustainable Development Concept," Finansovyj žhurnal — Financial Journal, Financial Research Institute, Moscow 125375, Russia, issue 5, pages 59-70, October.
    10. Kuşkaya, Sevda & Bilgili, Faik & Muğaloğlu, Erhan & Khan, Kamran & Hoque, Mohammad Enamul & Toguç, Nurhan, 2023. "The role of solar energy usage in environmental sustainability: Fresh evidence through time-frequency analyses," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 206(C), pages 858-871.
    11. Huang, Xiaoxun & Hayashi, Kiichiro & Fujii, Minoru & Villa, Ferdinando & Yamazaki, Yuri & Okazawa, Hiromu, 2023. "Identification of potential locations for small hydropower plant based on resources time footprint: A case study in Dan River Basin, China," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 205(C), pages 293-304.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Yashuang Feng & Lixiao Zhang, 2023. "The GHG Intensities of Wind Power Plants in China from a Life-Cycle Perspective: The Impacts of Geographical Location, Turbine Technology and Management Level," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-17, March.
    2. Li, Jinying & Li, Sisi & Wu, Fan, 2020. "Research on carbon emission reduction benefit of wind power project based on life cycle assessment theory," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 155(C), pages 456-468.
    3. Zhang, Xiaoyue & Huang, Guohe & Liu, Lirong & Li, Kailong, 2022. "Development of a stochastic multistage lifecycle programming model for electric power system planning – A case study for the Province of Saskatchewan, Canada," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    4. Li, Qiangfeng & Duan, Huabo & Xie, Minghui & Kang, Peng & Ma, Yi & Zhong, Ruoyu & Gao, Tianming & Zhong, Weiqiong & Wen, Bojie & Bai, Feng & Vuppaladadiyam, Arun K., 2021. "Life cycle assessment and life cycle cost analysis of a 40 MW wind farm with consideration of the infrastructure," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    5. Campos-Guzmán, Verónica & García-Cáscales, M. Socorro & Espinosa, Nieves & Urbina, Antonio, 2019. "Life Cycle Analysis with Multi-Criteria Decision Making: A review of approaches for the sustainability evaluation of renewable energy technologies," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 343-366.
    6. Nugent, Daniel & Sovacool, Benjamin K., 2014. "Assessing the lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions from solar PV and wind energy: A critical meta-survey," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 229-244.
    7. Summerfield-Ryan, Oliver & Park, Susan, 2023. "The power of wind: The global wind energy industry's successes and failures," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 210(C).
    8. Niklas Andersen & Ola Eriksson & Karl Hillman & Marita Wallhagen, 2016. "Wind Turbines’ End-of-Life: Quantification and Characterisation of Future Waste Materials on a National Level," Energies, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-24, November.
    9. Mahmud, M.A. Parvez & Huda, Nazmul & Farjana, Shahjadi Hisan & Lang, Candace, 2020. "Life-cycle impact assessment of renewable electricity generation systems in the United States," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 151(C), pages 1028-1045.
    10. Alvarado, Rafael & Tillaguango, Brayan & Murshed, Muntasir & Ochoa-Moreno, Santiago & Rehman, Abdul & Işık, Cem & Alvarado-Espejo, Johana, 2022. "Impact of the informal economy on the ecological footprint: The role of urban concentration and globalization," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 750-767.
    11. Miller, Ian & Gençer, Emre & Vogelbaum, Hilary S. & Brown, Patrick R. & Torkamani, Sarah & O'Sullivan, Francis M., 2019. "Parametric modeling of life cycle greenhouse gas emissions from photovoltaic power," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 238(C), pages 760-774.
    12. Ravikumar, Dwarakanath & Wender, Ben & Seager, Thomas P. & Fraser, Matthew P. & Tao, Meng, 2017. "A climate rationale for research and development on photovoltaics manufacture," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 189(C), pages 245-256.
    13. Wang, Like & Wang, Yuan & Du, Huibin & Zuo, Jian & Yi Man Li, Rita & Zhou, Zhihua & Bi, Fenfen & Garvlehn, McSimon P., 2019. "A comparative life-cycle assessment of hydro-, nuclear and wind power: A China study," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 249(C), pages 37-45.
    14. Gabriel Constantino & Marcos Freitas & Neilton Fidelis & Marcio Giannini Pereira, 2018. "Adoption of Photovoltaic Systems Along a Sure Path: A Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) Study Applied to the Analysis of GHG Emission Impacts," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-28, October.
    15. Martín-Gamboa, Mario & Marques, Pedro & Freire, Fausto & Arroja, Luís & Dias, Ana Cláudia, 2020. "Life cycle assessment of biomass pellets: A review of methodological choices and results," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    16. Michaela Gkantou & Carlos Rebelo & Charalampos Baniotopoulos, 2020. "Life Cycle Assessment of Tall Onshore Hybrid Steel Wind Turbine Towers," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-21, August.
    17. Violeta Motuzienė & Kęstutis Čiuprinskas & Artur Rogoža & Vilūnė Lapinskienė, 2022. "A Review of the Life Cycle Analysis Results for Different Energy Conversion Technologies," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-26, November.
    18. Mendecka, Barbara & Lombardi, Lidia, 2019. "Life cycle environmental impacts of wind energy technologies: A review of simplified models and harmonization of the results," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 462-480.
    19. Cartelle Barros, Juan José & Lara Coira, Manuel & de la Cruz López, María Pilar & del Caño Gochi, Alfredo & Soares, Isabel, 2020. "Probabilistic multicriteria environmental assessment of power plants: A global approach," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 260(C).
    20. Rohan Zafar Butt & Syed Ali Abbas Kazmi & Mohammed Alghassab & Zafar A. Khan & Abdullah Altamimi & Muhammad Imran & Fahad F. Alruwaili, 2022. "Techno-Economic and Environmental Impact Analysis of Large-Scale Wind Farms Integration in Weak Transmission Grid from Mid-Career Repowering Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-31, February.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:147:y:2021:i:c:s1364032121005426. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/600126/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.