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An assessment of the energy-saving potential in China's petroleum refining industry from a technical perspective

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  • Liu, Xiaoyu
  • Chen, Dingjiang
  • Zhang, Wenjun
  • Qin, Weizhong
  • Zhou, Wenji
  • Qiu, Tong
  • Zhu, Bing

Abstract

As a major contributor to productivity and employment in China, the petroleum refining industry consumes approximately 15% of industrial fuel oil and 10% of industrial coal. Given this energy-intensive characteristic, cost-effective investments for energy-efficient technologies may be a useful strategy to improve the competitiveness of China's refining industry. More importantly, this approach may alleviate the environmental problems China faces. This paper addresses the challenges posed by a highly complex refining system, incomplete industrial information, and the absence of a widely accepted evaluation method. This study models and analyzes the energy-savings potential for refining and conversion processes in the context of technological change. The results indicate that upgrading process heaters have been a priority during recent years, but heat recovery and advanced process control systems will gradually begin to dominate the technological marketplace in the long term. Current technology policies will result in approximately 2.7 × 108 GJ of energy savings by 2020, keeping the average energy consumption of refineries within 57 kg oil equivalent (kgoe)/t-feed. If a cap-and-trade scheme is introduced in the future, a further reduction of up to 10% can be achieved. Various specific barriers that impede the realization of potential goals are also addressed in this study.

Suggested Citation

  • Liu, Xiaoyu & Chen, Dingjiang & Zhang, Wenjun & Qin, Weizhong & Zhou, Wenji & Qiu, Tong & Zhu, Bing, 2013. "An assessment of the energy-saving potential in China's petroleum refining industry from a technical perspective," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 38-49.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:energy:v:59:y:2013:i:c:p:38-49
    DOI: 10.1016/j.energy.2013.07.049
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    3. Jiang, Xuemei & Zhu, Kunfu & Green, Christopher, 2015. "China's energy saving potential from the perspective of energy efficiency advantages of foreign-invested enterprises," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 104-112.
    4. Xi Yang & Xiaoqian Xi & Shan Guo & Wanqi Lin & Xiangzhao Feng, 2018. "Carbon Mitigation Pathway Evaluation and Environmental Benefit Analysis of Mitigation Technologies in China’s Petrochemical and Chemical Industry," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(12), pages 1-25, November.
    5. Tahouni, Nassim & Gholami, Majid & Panjeshahi, M. Hassan, 2016. "Integration of flare gas with fuel gas network in refineries," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 82-91.
    6. Song, Jian & Li, Yan & Gu, Chun-wei & Zhang, Li, 2014. "Thermodynamic analysis and performance optimization of an ORC (Organic Rankine Cycle) system for multi-strand waste heat sources in petroleum refining industry," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 673-680.
    7. Park, Nyun-Bae & Park, Sang Yong & Kim, Jong-Jin & Choi, Dong Gu & Yun, Bo Yeong & Hong, Jong Chul, 2017. "Technical and economic potential of highly efficient boiler technologies in the Korean industrial sector," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 121(C), pages 884-891.
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    9. Pan, Lingying & Liu, Pei & Li, Zheng, 2018. "A discussion on China's vehicle fuel policy: Based on the development route optimization of refining industry," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 403-412.
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