Research on carbon emission reduction benefit of wind power project based on life cycle assessment theory

Abstract

With the global energy crisis and the increasing severity of environmental pollution, promoting the exploitation of clean energy, especially the renewable energy, has become an effective way to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels and the emissions of carbon dioxide. Based on the facts above, this paper carries out a comprehensive analysis of the carbon emissions during the whole life cycle of wind power project according to the life-cycle assessment theory, and both the construction of wind farm project and the corresponding networking project are taken into consideration. Then, the Life cycle inventory of wind power project is delivered to carry out the calculation of carbon emissions during the project’s whole life cycle. Finally, the 49.5 MW wind power project in Shi-san-jian-fang area of Xinjiang is employed for empirical analysis to discuss the project’s carbon intensity and the potential of emission reductions. The result shows that the carbon intensity of this wind power project is 4.429 g/kWh and the potential for emission reductions throughout its life cycle reaches 2.0416 million tons in theory, which means wind power project owes huge potential for emission reductions compared with general coal-fired stations.