Strategic Conception of Carbon Neutralization in Coal Industry

• Published in: Zhongguo gong cheng ke xue (Online) Vol. 25; no. 5; pp. 103 - 110
• Main Author: Yuan, Liang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 《中国工程科学》杂志社 01.10.2023
• Subjects: carbon neutrality; clean and efficient utilization; coal industry; coupling of coal and clean energy; strategic path
• ISSN: 1009-1742; 2096-0034
• DOI: 10.15302/J-SSCAE-2023.05.009

The coal industry is crucial for guaranteeing China’s energy security and achieving the carbon peaking and carbon neutralization (i.e., “dual carbon”) goals. Therefore, it is imperative to formulate a carbon neutralization strategy for the coal industry from a top-level design perspective. Considering China’s basic national conditions and regional characteristics, this study elaborates the strategic conception of carbon neutralization of the coal industry from the aspects of development concept, expected goals, and key directions, and clarifies specific implementation paths. Specifically, the core concept is to achieve the “dual carbon” goals by both considering regional disparities and promoting regional coordination; based on an overall planning nationwide, the coal energy production, coal energy application, and new energy coupling zones should be scientifically classified, thus to realize the “dual carbon” goals by region and step. The development concept can be implemented via three stages: peak attainment, orderly optimization, and neutralization attainment, and the implementation path can be detailed as carbon emission reduction, carbon substitution, carbon sequestration, and carbon recycling. Moreover, efforts should focus on breakthroughs in the following applied technologies: intelligent and precise mining and clean and efficient utilization of coal, exploitation and utilization of coal mine gas at full concentration, pumped storage of abandoned mines, energy storage and power  consumption, coupling of clean coal power with carbon capture, utilization and storage, efficiently replacing of coalbed methane with CO2, CO2 bio/chemical utilization, and green ecological restoration of mines. Relevant research can provide a pioneering and fundamental reference for the coal industry to realize the “dual carbon” goals.