CIESC Journal ›› 2021, Vol. 72 ›› Issue (12): 5893-5903.DOI: 10.11949/0438-1157.20211468

• Reviews and monographs • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Key role of chemical engineering in transition to low-carbon development in perspective of the linkage between resource utilization and carbon emissions

Bing ZHU1,2,3(),Dingjiang CHEN1,2,3,Meng JIANG1,Yucheng REN1,Yuheng CAO1,Wenji ZHOU4,Shanying HU1,2,3,Yong JIN1,2,3()   

  1. 1.Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
    2.Institute for Circular Economy, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
    3.Institute for National and Global Governance, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
    4.School of Applied Economics, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100086, China
  • Received:2021-10-13 Revised:2021-11-12 Online:2021-12-22 Published:2021-12-05
  • Contact: Yong JIN

化学工程在低碳发展转型中的关键作用探讨——从物质资源利用与碳排放关联的视角

朱兵1,2,3(),陈定江1,2,3,蒋萌1,任钰成1,曹煜恒1,周文戟4,胡山鹰1,2,3,金涌1,2,3()   

  1. 1.清华大学化学工程系,北京 100084
    2.清华大学循环经济研究院,北京 100084
    3.清华大学国家治理与全球治理 研究院,北京 100084
    4.中国人民大学应用经济学院,北京 100086
  • 通讯作者: 金涌
  • 作者简介:朱兵(1967—),男,博士,教授,bingzhu@tsinghua.edu.cn
  • 基金资助:
    国家自然科学基金项目(41661144023);国务院参事室重点课题(2018年)

Abstract:

The current material resource utilization model urgently needs to transform to low-carbon development. It requires chemical engineering researchers, practitioners, and stakeholders in process industries to reinvestigate the relationship between resources utilization and carbon emissions from a systematic perspective. Based on the latest progress results on resource efficiency and low-carbon transition, the analysis of this study obtained three understandings on the interlinks between resource efficiency and low-carbon development. (1) Synergy: improving resources efficiency benefits carbon reduction. Utilization of resources is deeply coupled with carbon emissions, and improving the resource efficiency significantly step up the transition towards low-carbon society. (2) Trade-off: the low-carbon transition is built upon large demands for crucial resources. Accelerating technology innovation and advancing the circular economy are essential to offset these impacts. (3) The utilization mode of fossil fuel resources will undergo a fundamental change in the contexts of climate change to form the mode that fossil resources should be used as ‘materials' rather than ‘fuels'. Transiting towards the mode of ‘sustainable energy' and ‘sustainable carbon resource' is the direction of development for low-carbon process industries. As the core discipline dealing with the transformation and utilization of resources, chemical engineering is expected to play an essential and irreplaceable role in the low-carbon transition.

Key words: chemical engineering, material resources, carbon emission, climate change, low-carbon transition

摘要:

当前物质资源利用模式迫切需要向低碳发展转型。化学工程的科研人员及流程工业领域的利益相关者,有必要以资源利用模式的系统视角,重新审视物质资源利用与碳排放的复杂关系。基于本研究团队近年来对资源效率模式及低碳转型的研究成果,结合国内外相关研究进展,针对化学工程与低碳转型发展的关系进行深入分析,总结提出三个主要观点:(1)低碳转型中提升资源效率与碳减排存在正向协同,即物质资源利用与碳排放存在强关联,需要提升资源效率促进低碳发展转型;(2)低碳转型中碳减排和物质资源利用存在反向协同,低碳转型将拉动大量物质资源需求,需要通过技术创新和发展循环经济来对冲;(3)气候目标下化石资源利用模式将发生深刻变革,化石资源将更多地发挥“材料属性”而不是“能源属性”;“可持续的能源”和“可持续的碳源”将成为低碳流程工业的未来发展方向。化学工程作为研究物质资源转化的核心学科,将在人类向低碳社会过渡中发挥重要的和不可替代的作用。

关键词: 化学工程, 物质资源, 碳排放, 气候变化, 低碳转型

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