Changes In Energy Use Research Articles

Industrial energy conservation and emission reduction performance in China: A city-level nonparametric analysis

This paper proposes a Malmquist energy conservation and emission reduction performance index (MECERPI) for assessing the performance changes in energy use and pollutant emissions over time. The index is built upon the non-radial directional distance function and can be derived by solving data envelopment analysis. We apply the MECERPI to empirically investigate the industrial performance of energy conservation and emission reduction in over two hundred cities in China as well as its influential factors. Our empirical results show that due to the combined effects of technological progress and efficiency improvement, the energy conservation and emission reduction performance of Chinese industry has improved at an average annual rate of 16%. The catch-up effect and convergence exist throughout the country, including the eastern, central, western and northeastern regions. The best performers, which act as the benchmark for industrial energy conservation and emission reduction, are the coastal cities in eastern China.

Regional energy rebound effect: The impact of economy-wide and sector level energy efficiency improvement in Georgia, USA

Rebound effect is defined as the lost part of ceteris paribus energy savings from improvements on energy efficiency. In this paper, we investigate economy-wide energy rebound effects by developing a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model for Georgia, USA. The model adopts a highly disaggregated sector profile and highlights the substitution possibilities between different energy sources in the production structure. These two features allow us to better characterize the change in energy use in face of an efficiency shock, and to explore in detail how a sector-level shock propagates throughout the economic structure to generate aggregate impacts. We find that with economy-wide energy efficiency improvement on the production side, economy-wide rebound is moderate. Energy price levels fall very slightly, yet sectors respond to these changing prices quite differently in terms of local production and demand. Energy efficiency improvements in particular sectors (epicenters) induce quite different economy-wide impacts. In general, we expect large rebound if the epicenter sector is an energy production sector, a direct upstream/downstream sector of energy production sectors, a transportation sector or a sector with high production elasticity. Our analysis offers valuable insights for policy makers aiming to achieve energy conservation through increasing energy efficiency.

Global energy use: Decoupling or convergence?

We examine the key factors driving change in energy use globally over the past four decades. We test for both strong decoupling where economic growth has less effect on energy use as income increases, and weak decoupling where energy use declines overtime in richer countries, ceteris paribus. Our econometric approach is robust to the presence of unit roots, unobserved time effects, and spatial effects. Our key findings are that the growth of per capita energy use has been primarily driven by economic growth, convergence in energy intensity, and weak decoupling. There is no sign of strong decoupling.

A framework for the exergy analysis of future transport pathways: Application for the United Kingdom transport system 2010–2050

Exergy analysis has been used to quantify the historical resource use efficiency and environmental impact of transport systems. However, few exergy studies have explored future transport pathways. This study aims to, (a) develop a conceptual framework for the exergy analysis of multiple future transport and electricity pathways, (b) apply this framework to quantify future resource consumption and service delivery patterns, (c) discuss the policy-relevant results that exergy studies of future transport systems can offer. Multiple transport and electricity pathways developed by the UK Government are used to explore changes in energy use, useful work delivery and greenhouse gas emissions. In passenger transport, ambitious electrification results in a 20% increase of useful work delivery, whilst reducing GHG emissions and energy consumption by 65%. For freight, international shipping and aviation, smaller exergy efficiency improvements make useful work delivery and greenhouse gas emissions highly dependent on transport demand. Passenger transport electrification brings a step-change in useful work delivery, which if accompanied by low-carbon electricity, significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions. The efficiency of low-carbon electricity systems is significant for useful work delivery, but not dominant across the scenarios explored. High penetration of renewables and electrified transport is the most resource-efficient combination in this context.

Decomposition of Energy Consumption in India: A Case of Output Leakage and Technology Improvement

The paper attempts to study relative contribution of the specific sources of changes in energy use in the Indian economy. Results of a structural decomposition analysis in a constant price hybrid Input-Output framework underscore contribution of the final demand shifts as a significant factor impacting the energy use. Nevertheless, changes over time in production technology exhibit tremendous conservation potential. The paper notes that technology improvement occurs gradually and the effect is profound over the long term. Further, the results validate the extent of output leakage in the energy sector thus highlighting domestic supply constraints. A high ratio of India’s energy imports-to-energy embedded in exports is observed which has implications from an environment perspective.

Greening of capitalism: how Asia is driving the next great transformation

As China, India, and other industrializing giants grow, they are confronted with an inconvenient truth: They cannot rely on the conventions of capitalism as we know them today. Western industrialism has achieved miracles, promoting unprecedented levels of prosperity and raising hundreds of millions out of poverty. Yet, if allowed to proceed unencumbered, this paradigm will do irreversible harm to the planet.By necessity, a new approach to environmentally conscious development is already emerging in the East, with China leading the way. Positioning its argument against zero-growth advocates and free-market environmentalists, Greening of Capitalism charts this transformation and sketches out a framework for more sustainable capitalism. State-mandated changes in energy use (as opposed to carbon taxes), a circular flow of resources (as opposed to emissions standards), and the introduction of new financial instruments that support green growth are cornerstones of China's framework. John A. Mathews argues that these tenets will be emulated around the world-first in India and Brazil. In light of this emerging shift, Mathews considers core debates over national security, international relations, and economic policy, ultimately addressing the question of whether these measures will be far-reaching or timely enough to prevent further damage.

미래 기후변화에 따른 가정 및 상업 부문 에너지수요 변화 추정

In this study it is attempted to estimate the possible change in energy use for resi- dential and commercial sector in Korea under a future climate change senario. Based on the national energy use and observed temperature data during the period 1991~2010, the optimal base temperature for determining heating and cooling degree days (HDD and CDD) is calcu- lated. Then, net changes in fossil fuel and electricity uses that are statistically linked with a temperature variation are quantified through regression analyses of HDD and CDD against the energy use. Finally, the future projection of energy use is estimated by applying the regression model and future temperature projections by the CMIP5 results under the RCP8.5 scenario. The results indicate that, overall, the net annual energy use will decrease mostly due to a large decrease in the fossil fuel use for heating. However, a clear seasonal contrast in energy use is anticipated in the electricity use; there will be an increase in a warm-season demand for cool- ing but a decrease in a cold-season demand for heating.

The Effects of Trade, Domestic Final Demand and Technology on Energy Consumption of China

The rapid growth of China’s economy consumed a lot of energy, but excessive energy consumption may constraint the sustainable development of China. This paper constructs a two-tier structural decomposition analysis model to decompose the change of energy use during 1987 and 2010 into 11 factors, and analyze the results of sub-periods. The results show that the scale and products’ structure of domestic final demand, the scale of exports, imports substitution, the structure and the input technology of material promoted the energy in the whole period. However, the intensity of energy, the products structure of exports , the structure and technology change of energy input reduced the energy consumption.

Index decomposition analysis of residential energy consumption in China: 2002–2010

Residential energy consumption in China increased dramatically over the period of 2002–2010. In this paper, we undertake a decomposition analysis of changes in energy use by Chinese households for five energy-using activities: space heating/cooling, cooking, lighting and electric appliances. We investigate to what extent changes in energy use are due to changes from appliances and to change in floor space, population and energy mix. Our decomposition analysis is based on the logarithmic mean Divisia index technique using data from the China statistical yearbook and China energy statistical yearbook in the period of 2002–2010. According to our results, the increase in energy-using appliances is the biggest contributor to the increase of residential energy consumption during 2002–2010 but the effect declines over time, due to energy efficiency improvements in those appliances. The second most important contributor is floor space per capita, which increased with 28%. Of the four factors, population is the most stable factor and energy mix is the least important factor. We predicted electricity use, with the help of regression-based predictions for ownership of appliances and the energy efficiency of appliances. We found that electricity use will continue to rise despite a gradual saturation of demand.

Influencing Carbon Behaviours: What Psychological and Demographic Factors Contribute to Individual Differences in Home Energy Use Reduction and Transportation Mode Decisions?

As pressure mounts on countries to reduce carbon emissions, there is increasing interest in understanding what drives “carbon behaviours”, in order to inform behavioural change policies. This study examined the impact of psychological and demographic variables, on “carbon behaviours”. Secondary data analysis was carried out to investigate the antecedents of residential energy use reduction behaviours and choice of transportation mode for commuting and grocery shopping. Models explained 18.2% and 25.2% of variance in energy use and transport behaviours respectively. Being concerned about climate change and having an environmental identity increased household energy reduction behaviour but did not significantly affect travel mode choices. The antecedents of travel mode decisions were attitudes towards the travel mode itself, and demographic and structural variables such as income and distance travelled. Findings suggest that using “green” messaging will help encourage behavioural change in energy use, but contribute little to encouraging change in travel mode decisions.

Global Energy Use: Decoupling or Convergence?

We examine the key factors driving change in energy use globally over the past four decades. Our econometric approach is robust to the presence of unit roots, unobserved time effects, and spatial effects. We test for both strong decoupling where economic growth has less effect on energy use as income increases, and weak decoupling where energy use declines over time in richer countries, ceteris paribus. Our key findings are that the growth of per capita energy use has been primarily driven by economic growth, convergence in energy intensity and weak decoupling. There is no sign of strong decoupling.

Sources and history of PAHs in lake sediments from oil-producing and industrial areas, northeast China

Abundance, sources, and historical records of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in sediment cores of three lakes located in northeast China were evaluated. One lake was located in a rural oil field area, one in an industrial urban oil field area, and the third in an urban industrialized area without oil field influence. Cores from each lake were divided into 1-cm sections, dated using 137Cs techniques, and 16 priority PAH compounds were measured. Total PAH concentrations were greater in industrial areas than in rural area, regardless of associated oil production. Only petroleum sources of PAHs were identified in lakes near oil fields between 1950s and 1980s, while sources of liquid fossil fuel combustion were persistently identified in the industrial urban lake. From 1990s to 2000s, PAH concentrations, especially high molecular weight PAHs, significantly increased in all lakes, which were consistent with the economic development in China, suggesting a change in energy use from wood burning and petroleum (oil) to liquid fossil fuel combustion. Environmental risk was low to moderate in sediments of the three lakes studied, and increases in high molecular weight PAHs during 1900s–2000s is a concern.

“Rebound” Effects from Increased Energy Efficiency: A Time to Pause and Reflect

The phenomenon of rebound effects has sparked considerable academic, policy and press debate in recent years over the effectiveness of energy efficiency policy. There has been a huge surge in empirical studies claiming rebound effects of hugely varying magnitudes. The contention of this paper is that the lack of consensus in the literature is grounded in a rush to empirical estimation in the absence of solid analytical foundations. Focus on measuring a single “rebound” measure has led to a neglect of detail on precisely what type of change in energy use is considered in any one study and on the range of mechanisms governing the economy-wide response. This paper attempts to bring a reflective pause to the development of the rebound literature, with a view to identifying the key issues that policymakers need to understand and analysts need to focus their attention on.

RelB and the aryl hydrocarbon receptor: dendritic cell tolerance at the epithelial interface

RelB and the aryl hydrocarbon receptor: dendritic cell tolerance at the epithelial interface

Energy subsidies, structure of electricity prices and technological change of energy use

This paper addresses the impact of the structure of energy prices on technological change in renewable energy sources. It operates on two fields of research that are often not related to each other. Firstly, the increasing interest in environmental economics for the determinants of green technological change, and secondly the impact of government policies aimed at subsidizing energy prices. Recent research claims a positive relationship between energy prices and the number of patents in the fields of energy efficiency. This paper extends this research by investigating the impact of the price structure of electricity on patent counts in 1) renewable energy sources, 2) wind energy and 3) solar power. In nearly all OECD countries in the period 1990–2006 industrial energy users pay a lower price per energy unit than households due, among others, to government subsidy policies. The empirical results show that reducing government subsidies and hence increasing the electricity price of (large) industrial electricity users relative to the price paid by (small) residential users provides a clear incentive to increase inventions as measured by number of patents in the technical fields of solar and wind energy. These results are an important input in the debate on reducing government support to large energy users.

Charging Choices and Fuel Displacement in a Large-Scale Demonstration of Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles

Because relatively few plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) have been deployed to date, existing analyses of the effects of PHEVs on gasoline and electricity demand have been based on the travel patterns of conventional vehicles and assumption-driven charging scenarios. A comprehensive analysis of a real-world fleet of 125 instrumented PHEV prototypes deployed in the United States over a 1-year period—likely the first application of a discrete choice model to the empirical analysis of plug-in vehicle charging—is presented. First, the trial is introduced, and the patterns of travel, charging behavior, and observed energy consumption are analyzed. Then, a mixed logit model of the decision to charge at the end of each trip is estimated. Results indicate that charging usually is done after the day's last trip when ending at home and when the next trip will occur in more than 3 h, even though significant heterogeneity exists between drivers. Finally, the performance of this fleet is simulated with different vehicle designs and charging patterns. Results indicate that aggressive opportunistic charging after every trip results in approximately the same fuel savings as increasing the battery size by a factor of five. However, fast charging provides only marginal changes in energy use for the observed use patterns.

Comparison of the energy efficiency of dairy production farms using different housing systems

Energy use is an important consideration for developing more sustainable agricultural practices. Identifying animal production methods that maximize energy efficiency and minimize greenhouse gas emissions is vital. This study determined the energy use and the energy use efficiency (EUE) of two specialized dairy farms with different barn planning systems in Konya, Turkey. Total energy use included both the direct energy and indirect energy consumed during the production of farm inputs. This study investigated changes in energy use and EUE between Dairy Farm A, with a freestall dairy cattle housing system (ADF), and Dairy Farm B, with loose housing systems (BDF).The results showed that animal feed accounted for a high percentage of total energy use and that electricity comprised the major portion of the direct energy used on both farms. The total energy use per hectare was lower for ADF compared with BDF. The energy productivity of the farms was set at 5.4 L milk per 100 MJ−1and 3.9 L milk per 100 MJ−1 for energy use on ADF and BDF, respectively. EUE was highly dependent on the energy inputs. For that reason, it is recommended that freestall dairy cattle barns be used for dairy cattle breeding and milk production. © 2012 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 32: 1202–1208, 2013

Energy Crisis Management, Temporary Incentives, Long-Term Effects: Evidence from the 2001 Brazilian Electricity Crisis

There is little evidence on the impacts of ambitious energy conservation programs, which aim at large reductions in energy use. Ambitious programs are more likely to trigger lumpy adjustments inherent in the use of energy (e.g., appliance stock or habits). In this paper, I estimate the impacts on residential consumption of the most ambitious electricity conservation program to date. This was an innovative program of economic (e.g., fines) and social (e.g., conservation appeals) incentives implemented by the Brazilian government in 2001 in areas facing supply shortages of over 20%. I find that the program reduced average electricity consumption per customer by 28% during the nine months of its implementation, and by 13% until ten years later. Using individual billing data for three million customers, I show that average effects came from widespread reductions among customers. I also provide evidence that long-term impacts came mostly from lumpy adjustments in consumption behaviors (new habits). Finally, I structurally estimate a simple model to quantify the role of social incentives and lumpy adjustments. Social incentives played a major role and may be particularly powerful in times of crisis. Importantly, a permanent 80% tariff increase would have been necessary to achieve similar impacts without lumpy adjustments. The possibility of triggering lumpy adjustments may thus substantially reduce the incentives necessary to achieve large changes in energy use.

Field Measurements of Residential Energy Consumption and Indoor Thermal Environment in Six Chinese Cities

The purpose of this study was to reveal the energy use and indoor environment characteristics of twelve households located in six cities in China, including daily use of gas and electricity, temperature and humidity throughout a year. The energy uses for district heating and hot water were not included. The investigated houses were separated into two groups, namely Group 1 with domestic heating, and Group 2 with district heating. The analysis showed that the energy use of Lighting and Audio visual & information for each house is not very different during the four seasons. Annual energy use varied from 13.3 to 32.4 GJ in Group 1. The energy use of House 05 was 32.4 GJ/year, which is the highest in Group 1, the space heating reached 18.5 GJ/year, accounting for 57% of the total. Energy use of House 01 increased in winter and summer, which is attributed to the use of heating in winter and cooling in summer, respectively. Annual energy use varied from 2.9 to 17.0 GJ in Group 2. Almost no change of energy use was found for the houses in Group 2 during the four seasons, but a big difference of average indoor temperature was found in the coldest days between the houses in Group 1 (around 10 °C) and Group 2 (around 20 °C), while the difference was small in summer.

Energy footprint of the city: Effects of urban land use and transportation policies

Urban land use and transportation policies have dramatic effects on the density and spatial distribution of residences in large cities. Effects of these policies have been analyzed using numerical urban simulation models. At the same time, the US Energy Information Administration’s Residential Energy Consumption Survey has allowed researchers to investigate the relation between household energy consumption and characteristics of housing units.This paper links these two lines of inquiry by demonstrating how simulation results on the implications of land use and transportation policies for the spatial form of cities can be used to compute implications for energy consumption. The resulting Urban Energy Footprint Model, “UEFM,” allows one to trace the implications of a change in land use zoning or transportation policy through its effects on housing markets and residential location to the resulting changes in energy use for residential and commuting purposes – i.e. to understand the energy footprint of transportation, housing, and land use policies. Accordingly, the UEFM provides, perhaps for the first time, a link between urban and energy economics, and can allow measurement of rebound effects of energy policies in a more general equilibrium context.