An energy future beyond climate neutrality : Comprehensive evaluations of transition pathways
Martin, Nick (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals)
Talens Peiró, Laura (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals)
Villalba, Gara (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental)
Nebot-Medina, Rafael (Instituto Tecnológico de Canarias. Departamento Científico y Tecnológico de Computación)
Madrid, Cristina (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals)

Date:	2023
Abstract:	Many of the long-term policy decisions surrounding the sustainable energy transition rely on models that fail to consider environmental impacts and constraints beyond direct greenhouse gas emissions and land occupation. Such assessments offer incomplete and potentially misleading information about the true sustainability issues of transition pathways. Meanwhile, although decision-makers desire greater access to a broader range of environmental, material and socio-economic indicators, few tools currently address this gap. Here, we introduce ENBIOS, a framework that integrates a broader range of such indicators into energy modelling and policymaking practices. By calculating sustainability-related indicators across hierarchical levels, we reach deeper understandings of the potential energy systems to be derived. With ENBIOS, we analyse a series of energy pathways designed by the Calliope energy system optimization model for the European energy system in 2030 and 2050. Although overall emissions will drop significantly, considerable rises in land, labour and critical raw material requirements are likely. These outcomes are further reflected in unfavourable shifts in key metabolic indicators during this period; energy metabolic rate of the system will drop by 25. 6%, land requirement-to-energy will quadruple, while the critical raw material supply risk-to-energy ratio will rise by 74. 2%. Heat from biomass and electricity from wind and solar are shown to be the dominant future processes across most indicator categories.
Grants:	European Commission 837089 Agencia Estatal de Investigación PID2020-119565RJ-I00
Note:	Altres ajuts: acords transformatius de la UAB
Note:	Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-M
Rights:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, fins i tot amb finalitats comercials, sempre i quan es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Subject:	Critical raw materials ; Energy modelling ; Integrated assessment ; Life cycle assessment ; Renewable energy ; Sustainable energy transition ; SDG 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy ; SDG 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production
Published in:	Applied energy, Vol. 331 (February 2023) , art. 120366, ISSN 0306-2619

DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2022.120366

11 p, 2.1 MB

The record appears in these collections:
Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Experimental sciences > Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals (ICTA) > Sustainability and Environmental Protection (Sostenipra)
Articles > Research articles
Articles > Published articles