The potential impact of increased whole grain consumption among Chinese adults on reducing healthcare costs and carbon footprint

Excessive consumption of refined grains harms human health and ecosystem viability.Whole grains,as a healthy and sustainable alternative to refined grains,can benefit individual health by providing dietary fiber,B vitamins,and bioactive substances.Additionally,they aid in improving the environment due to their higher extraction rate and lower carbon emission during the processing stage.However,few studies have attempted to evaluate the economic and social benefits of increasing the amount of whole grain in grain intake.This paper estimates the potential savings in healthcare costs and reduced food carbon footprints(CFs)that could result from a shift toward whole grain consumption following the Chinese Dietary Guidelines(CDG).We investigate hypothetical scenarios where a certain proportion(5–100%)of Chinese adults could increase their whole grain intakes as proposed by CDG to meet the average shortfall of 30.2 g.In that case,the healthcare costs for associated diseases(e.g.,type2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM),cardiovascular disease(CVD),and colorectal cancer(CRC))are expected to reduce by a substantial amount,from USD 2.82 to 56.37 billion;the carbon emission levels are also projected to decrease by0.24–5.72 million tons.This study provides compelling evidence that advocating for the transition towards greater consumption of whole grain products could benefit individual health,the environment,and society,by reducing both healthcare costs and carbon emissions.

Impact of carbon disclosure on debt financing costs

Creditors,such as banks,often use disclosed environmental information to assess a company’s environmental risk and ensure the safety of debt funds.Consequently,carbon disclosures have become an important consideration for creditors when making investments.This study explores the relationship between carbon disclosure and debt financing costs using data on listed companies from 2008 to 2019.The results show that carbon disclosure can reduce the debt financing costs of enterprises,and that this influence is more significant for private companies than for state-owned enterprises.Instrumental variables and Propensity Score Matching(PSM)were used to evaluate the robustness of negative relationships.Furthermore,carbon disclosure has a more significant impact on debt costs with less environmental supervision pressure,weak residents’environmental awareness,and weak product market competition.These findings provide guidance for companies’carbon information disclosure and support the establishment of official carbon disclosure standards.

Optimized scheduling of integrated energy systems for low carbon economy considering carbon transaction costs

With the introduction of the“dual carbon”goal and the continuous promotion of low-carbon development,the integrated energy system(IES)has gradually become an effective way to save energy and reduce emissions.This study proposes a low-carbon economic optimization scheduling model for an IES that considers carbon trading costs.With the goal of minimizing the total operating cost of the IES and considering the transferable and curtailable characteristics of the electric and thermal flexible loads,an optimal scheduling model of the IES that considers the cost of carbon trading and flexible loads on the user side was established.The role of flexible loads in improving the economy of an energy system was investigated using examples,and the rationality and effectiveness of the study were verified through a comparative analysis of different scenarios.The results showed that the total cost of the system in different scenarios was reduced by 18.04%,9.1%,3.35%,and 7.03%,respectively,whereas the total carbon emissions of the system were reduced by 65.28%,20.63%,3.85%,and 18.03%,respectively,when the carbon trading cost and demand-side flexible electric and thermal load responses were considered simultaneously.Flexible electrical and thermal loads did not have the same impact on the system performance.In the analyzed case,the total cost and carbon emissions of the system when only the flexible electrical load response was considered were lower than those when only the flexible thermal load response was taken into account.Photovoltaics have an excess of carbon trading credits and can profit from selling them,whereas other devices have an excess of carbon trading and need to buy carbon credits.

Daily rolling estimation of carbon emission cost of coal-fired units considering long-cycle interactive operation simulation of carbon-electricity market

The high overlap of participants in the carbon emissions trading and electricity markets couples the operations of the two markets.The carbon emission cost(CEC)of coal-fired units becomes part of the power generation cost through market coupling.The accuracy of CEC calculation affects the clearing capacity of coal-fired units in the electric power market.Study of carbon–electricity market interaction and CEC calculations is still in its initial stages.This study analyzes the impact of carbon emissions trading and compliance on the operation of the electric power market and defines the cost transmission mode between the carbon emissions trading and electric power markets.A long-period interactive operation simulation mechanism for the carbon–electricity market is established,and operation and trading models of the carbon emissions trading market and electric power market are established.A daily rolling estimation method for the CEC of coal-fired units is proposed,along with the CEC per unit electric quantity of the coal-fired units.The feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method are verified through an example simulation,and the factors influencing the CEC are analyzed.

Capparis spinosa L waste activated carbon as an efficient adsorbent for crystal violet toxic dye removal: Modeling, optimization by experimental design, and ecological analysis

Textile dyes are dramatic sources of pollution and non-aesthetic disturbance of aquatic life and therefore represent a potential risk of bioaccumulation that can affect living species.It is imperative to reduce or eliminate these dyes from liquid effluents with innovative biomaterials and methods.Therefore,this research aims to highlight the performance of Capparis spinosa L waste-activated carbon(CSLW-AC)adsorbent to remove crystal violet(CV)from an aqueous solution.The mechanism of CV adsorption on CSLW-AC was evaluated based on the coupling of experimental data and different characterization techniques.The efficiency of the CSLW-AC material reflected by the equilibrium adsorption capacity of CV could reach more than 195.671 mg·g^(–1) when 0.5 g·L^(–1) of CSLW-AC(Particle size≤250μm)is introduced into the CV of initial concentration of 100 mg·L^(–1) at pH 6 and temperature 65℃ and in the presence of potassium ions after 60 min of contact time according to the one parameter at a time studies.The adsorption behavior of CV on CSLW-AC was found to be consistent with the pseudo-second-order kinetic model and Frumkin's linear isothermal model.The thermodynamic aspects indicate that the process is physical,spontaneous,and endothermic.The optimization of the process by the Box Behnken design of experiments resulted in an adsorption capacity approaching 183.544 mg·g^(–1)([CV]=100 mg·L^(–1) and[CSLW-AC]=0.5 g·L^(–1) at 35 min).The results of the Lactuca sativa seeds germination in treated CV(70%),adsorbent solvent and thermal regeneration(more than 5 cycles),and process cost analysis(1.0484 USD·L^(–1))tests are encouraging and promising for future exploitations of the CSLW-AC material in different industrial fields.

Simulation Modelling and Techno-Economics of Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Recompression Closed Brayton Cycle

In recent years, there has been global interest in meeting targets relating to energy affordability and security while taking into account greenhouse gas emissions. This has heightened major interest in potential investigations into the use of supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO2) power cycles. Climate change mitigation is the ultimate driver for this increased interest;other relevant issues include the potential for high cycle efficiency and a circular economy. In this study, a 25 MWe recompression closed Brayton cycle (RCBC) has been assessed, and sCO2 has been proposed as the working fluid for the power plant. The methodology used in this research work comprises thermodynamic and techno-economic analysis for the prospective commercialization of this sCO2 power cycle. An evaluated estimation of capital expenditure, operational expenditure, and cost of electricity has been considered in this study. The ASPEN Plus simulation results have been compared with theoretical and mathematical calculations to assess the performance of the compressors, turbine, and heat exchangers. The results thus reveal that the cycle efficiency for this prospective sCO2 recompression closed Brayton cycle increases (39% - 53.6%) as the temperature progressively increases from 550˚C to 900˚C. Data from the Aspen simulation model was used to aid the cost function calculations to estimate the total capital investment cost of the plant. Also, the techno-economic results have shown less cost for purchasing equipment due to fewer components being required for the cycle configuration as compared to the conventional steam power plant.

A Mechanism for Digital Finance to Drive Green and Low-Carbon Development

Given the global focus on green and low-carbon development and the increasing prominence of digital finance,it is particularly important to explore how to leverage digital finance to achieve these environmental goals.This study,through mechanism analysis,deeply examines how China’s digital finance promotes green and low-carbon development and elucidates the positive interaction between digital finance and the green industry.The study found that digital finance,through more flexible and efficient financial functions,alters the cost structure of carbon emissions,and reduces the risks and costs of green investments,thereby creating a cooperative green mechanism benefiting all parties,and guiding social groups toward a green and low-carbon transformation.Additionally,the rapid development of digital finance has strengthened the implementation of environmental protection policies,effectively promoted the expansion of the environmental protection industry,and established the green ethos as a mainstream concept in financial development.This study aims to provide reference perspectives and suggestions,assist policymakers in promoting the green and lowcarbon development of digital finance,and offer insights into the integrated development of digital finance and the green environmental protection industry.

CGE model-based analysis of the neutralized hybrid carbon policy and its decomposed effects on economic growth,carbon reduction,and energy utilization costs

The hybrid policy is a flexible policy tool that combines features of carbon trading and carbon taxation.Its economic and environmental effects under China's background are still not studied in detail.Given the exogenous carbon reduction targets,carbon prices,and carbon tax-rates,by computable general equilibrium modeling methods and factor decomposition methods,this article investigates direct and cascaded effects of the hybrid policy on economic growth,energy utilization,and carbon emission on the national level and the sector level,with China's national input-output data-set.Stepwisely,policy scenarios with irrational estimated results are selectively excluded based on comprehensive evaluation among economic,carbon reduction and other policy targets.As a result,against national economic conditions in 2007,the hybrid policy,with a carbon reduction target of -10%,a carbon tax-rate of around $10,and a ceiling carbon price of $40,is highly recommended,because of its significant lower economic loss,lower energy utilization cost,and practical robustness against fluctuation of energy market and carbon market.Furthermore,by decomposition analysis,carbon reduction-related costs are decomposed into a direct part that includes carbon allowance price and carbon tax,and an indirect part as the energy price incremental induced by direct carbon costs.Gross carbon reduction may be decomposed into three parts such as energy intensity,economic scale,and technical progress.And,carbon taxation is the main policy tool that stimulates to improve the energy efficiency.

High loading FeS2 nanoparticles anchored on biomass-derived carbon tube as low cost and long cycle anode for sodium-ion batteries

In recent years, the sodium storage mechanism and performance optimization of FeS2 have been studied intensively. However, before the commercial application of FeS2, preconditions of low-cost, simple craft and scale production of nanoscale FeS2 are also essential. Based on above challenges, mesh-like FeS2/carbon tube/FeS2 composites are prepared simply from green, low-cost and renewable natural herb in this work. With the assistance of protogenetic interconnected carbon tube network(only 5.3 wt%), FeS2/carbon tube/FeS2 composites show high capacity(542.2 mA h g^-1), good stability(< 0.005% per cycle over 1000 cycles), and excellent rate performance(426.2 mA h g^-1 at 2 A g^-1).The outstanding electrochemical performance of FeS2/carbon tube/FeS2 composites may be attributed to the unique interconnected reticular structure, meaning that FeS2 nanoparticles are effectively immobilized by carbon tube network via physical encapsulation and chemical bonding.More importantly, this work may provide green and low cost preparation method for specially structured metal sulfides/carbon composites,which promotes their commercial utilization in environmentally friendly energy storage system.

Amine-functionalized low-cost industrial grade multi-walled carbon nanotubes for the capture of carbon dioxide

Industrial grade multi-walled carbon nanotubes(IG-MWCNTs) are a low-cost substitute for commercially purified multi-walled carbon nanotubes(P-MWCNTs). In this work, IG-MWCNTs were functionalized with tetraethylenepentamine(TEPA) for CO2capture. The TEPA impregnated IG-MWCNTs were characterized with various experimental methods including N2adsorption/desorption isotherms, elemental analysis, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis. Both the adsorption isotherms of IGMWCNTs-n and the isosteric heats of different adsorption capacities were obtained from experiments. TEPA impregnated IG-MWCNTs were also shown to have high CO2adsorption capacity comparable to that of TEPA impregnated P-MWCNTs. The adsorption capacity of IG-MWCNTs based adsorbents was in the range of 2.145 to 3.088 mmol/g, depending on adsorption temperatures. Having the advantages of low-cost and high adsorption capacity, TEPA impregnated IG-MWCNTs seem to be a promising adsorbent for CO2capture from flue gas.

Research on power-supply cost of regional power system under carbon-peak target

With the establishment of the carbon-peak target by 2030,the direction of carbon emission reduction in China’s energy system has been further clarified.As the industry with the largest proportion of carbon emissions in China,the lowcarbon transformation of the electric power industry is critical to realize the carbon-peak target.Current research mostly focuses on technical analysis or system cost accounting of the carbon-peak realization path at the national level.There is a lack of targeted research on regional power systems with complex inter-regional power flow exchange and limited energy resource development.Simultaneously,the calculation of the system cost lacks the perspective of the life cycle and ignores the inertia of the stock and change inertia of incremental disturbance.From the perspective of the life cycle,this study proposes a calculation model of power supply cost for regional power systems according to the carbon-peak target,analyzes the realization path of the carbon target from an economic perspective,and provides references for the path selection and policy formulation of system transformation.

The impacts of U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on the carbon emission space and mitigation cost of China, EU, and Japan under the constraints of the global carbon emission space

Based on the Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model and scenario analysis, the impacts of the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on the carbon emission space and mitigation cost in China, European Union (EU), and Japan are assessed under Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and 2
C scenarios due to the changed emission pathway of the U.S. The results show that, under the condition of constant global cumulative carbon emissions and a fixed burden-sharing scheme among countries, the failure of the U.S. to honor its NDC commitment to different degrees will increase the U.S. carbon emission space and decrease its mitigation cost. However, the carbon emission space of other parties, including China, EU, and Japan, will be reduced and their mitigation costs will be increased. In 2030, under the 2
C target, the carbon price will increase by 4.4e14.6 US$ t1 in China, by 9.7e35.4 US$ t1 in the EU, and by 16.0e53.5 US$ t1 in Japan. In addition, China, EU, and Japan will incur additional Gross Domestic Production (GDP) loss. Under the 2
C target, the GDP loss of China would increase by US$22.0e71.1 billion (equivalent to 16.4e53.1 US$ per capita), the EU's GDP loss would increase by US$9.4e32.1 billion (equivalent to 20.7e71.1 US$ per capita), and Japan's GDP loss will increase by US$4.1e13.5 billion (equivalent to 34.3e111.6 US$ per capita).

Effect of Carbon Price Floor on Levelised Cost of Gas-Fired Generation Technology in the UK

The UK government implements carbon price floor to provide long-term incentive to invest in low-carbon technology, thus, fossil-fuel power plants have to face increasing carbon price. This report addresses the effect of carbon price floor on levelised cost of gas-fired generation technology through the levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) ap-proach with the estimation of carbon price floor. Finally, the comparison of levelised cost of electricity for all generation technology in the UK will be shown and discussed.

ZTE DSLAM Improves Operators' Carbon Footprint and Slashes Power Costs

ZTE Corporation (ZTE), a leading global provider of telecommunications equipment and network solutions, revealed on May 6, 2008 that its award winning Broadband Universal Access System could help operators make a major impact on their carbon footprint as well as save millions of dollars a year in power costs. ZTE’s DSLAM ZXDSL FSAP 9806H overreaches the European code of conduct on energy consumption for broadband equipment, offering a significant power consumption savings per port.

Trade Benefits and Environmental Costs of GVCS: A Case Study of the BRICS

As the international trading system has developed with the division of Global value Chains (GVCS), the export trade of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) has grown rapidly. The resulting growth of carbon emissions has drawn wide attention from the international community, necessitating the comparison of the trade benefits and environmental costs of the BRICS participation in GVCS. Based on the Eora database, this paper constructs a decomposition framework for the calculation of export value-added and embodied carbon, based on a multi-region input-output (MRIO) model. The trade benefits and environmental costs paid by the BRICS’ total exports from 1990 to 2015 were measured and the imbalance was analyzed, along with the causes. The results show that the main value-added and carbon embodied in the BRICS’ exports originate from their own countries, and the domestic value-added content of the BRICS’ exports decreased while the foreign value-added content increased.

碳减排“时-空-效-益”统筹理论:IV.收益统筹

面对巨大的气候变化损害以及高额的减排行动成本,如何在多时期、多主体框架下统筹经济发展与减排行动,协同推进发展与减排,成为全球气候治理中的关键议题。作为碳减排“时-空-效-益”统筹理论系列论文的组成部分,构建了收益统筹理论。该理论在综合集成时间统筹、空间统筹、效率统筹相关理论与方法基础上,以最优经济增长为核心,将碳排放问题引入长期宏观经济分析中,深入探析经济发展与减排行动二者间的复杂关系,构建了经济-气候双向耦合的中国气候变化综合评估模型,并设计了多区跨期优化福利函数,实现发展与减排的统筹。基于碳减排“时-空-效-益”统筹理论,应用中国气候变化综合评估模型C3IAM,明确了未来全球及各区域最优减排路径,并提出了各国及国家内部减排任务分配方案,科学回答了碳减排系统工程的减多少、何时减、谁来减、如何减、何效果等关键问题,为统筹发展与减排提供方法基础。

面向碳中和目标的中国工业部门减排路径与战略选择

工业部门(包含电力工业)是中国碳排放量最多的国民经济部门.探寻工业部门合理有效的碳减排路径是中国碳达峰、碳中和目标顺利实现的关键.本文分解了中国2000年—2019年工业碳排放历史演变路径的驱动因素,预测了三种情景下2019年—2060年工业碳排放的潜在演变路径,估计了工业部门碳中和进程中所需的投资额,讨论了不同减排时点选择下投资需求的异质性.研究发现:1)规模效应和效率效应是历史演变路径中最关键的驱动因素,而化石能源清洁转化效应、化石能源内部结构效应和清洁能源替代效应的影响较小;2)非电力工业未来核心的碳减排技术路径为能源效率提升和清洁能源消费替代,电力工业未来核心的碳减排技术路径则为清洁能源发电替代;3)在当前的技术水平下,工业部门碳中和的进程中需要超过300万亿元的巨额投资,所需投资主要集中于高排放的非电力工业.本文最后提出了“以技术为核心,以市场为机制,以政策为引导”的中国工业部门实现碳中和的战略选择.

碳中和视角下皮革企业环境成本核算与控制研究

碳中和是应对未来全球气候变暖、实现绿色可持续发展的重要举措。本文以碳中和背景下我国全面开展绿色可持续发展为抓手,对皮革企业的环境成本管理的成本核算、成本控制等工作的现状进行总结,认为当前我国皮革企业环境成本核算中存在环境成本确认不全面、环境成本分配不合理等问题;环境成本控制中存在环境成本披露实用性差、控制流程不完整等问题,针对这些问题提出了相应的优化方法。

中国碳排放权交易机制与实践:基于微观企业股权资本成本的视角

碳排放权交易市场作为企业减排增效的重要机制,引发了资本市场投资者对企业碳排放问题的关注,进而可能影响投资者对企业的风险评估与价值判断。手工整理中国各试点碳市场的控排企业名录发现:碳排放权交易机制显著提升了控排企业的权益资本成本,主要机制为投资者碳风险关注,但该市场机制存在明显的效应边界。进一步发现,当碳市场的初始配额实施部分竞价拍卖和非履约主体交易更为活跃,产品市场竞争程度更高和企业所在城市空气污染更为严重,以及企业非财务绩效表现更好时,碳排放权交易机制对企业权益资本成本的提升作用更为明显。研究结论有助于更为全面的评估我国碳市场建设的经济后果,为该低碳环保政策的持续推广提供理论依据与经验参考。

“双碳”目标下造纸企业环境成本管理体系改进研究

环境成本管理是企业开展环保工作的核心问题。如何构建高效且适合企业发展的具体环境成本管理体系已引起各领域的极大关注。基于此,简述了“双碳”目标下造纸企业的主要环境问题与特点,整理了造纸企业现有环境成本管理体系的不足之处,基于作业成本法进行造纸企业环境成本管理体系的改进,包括环境成本核算体系、环境成本控制体系与环境成本管理评价体系三方面。为了“双碳”背景下造纸企业能够高效应用作业成本法,提出环境成本管理改进体系实施的保障措施,以期优化造纸行业的环境成本管理方式,促进企业高质量、可持续发展。