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Diffusion of flue gas desulfurization reveals barriers and opportunities for carbon capture and storage

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  • Stijn van Ewijk

    (Yale University
    University College London
    University College London)

  • Will McDowall

    (University College London
    University College London)

Abstract

Addressing climate change may require rapid global diffusion of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS). To understand its potential diffusion, we analysed a historical analogy: Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) in the global coal power market. Our findings challenge common patterns: diffusion of FGD is not described by a single S-curve but by multiple steps and does not slow down after materiality. The regulation-driven diffusion of FGD can be fast, especially for retrofit since it does not require new power plants. Owing to the mature size of coal power plants, the diffusion of FGD is driven by unit numbers instead of unit capacity growth. We find that the diffusion of CCS in climate change mitigation pathways, when normalised for economic growth, rarely exceeds the historical maximum diffusion rate of FGD. Our findings suggest that end-of-pipe abatement technology can diffuse fast and to a great extent provided deep, consistent long-term regulatory commitment.

Suggested Citation

  • Stijn van Ewijk & Will McDowall, 2020. "Diffusion of flue gas desulfurization reveals barriers and opportunities for carbon capture and storage," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 11(1), pages 1-10, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:11:y:2020:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-020-18107-2
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-18107-2
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    Cited by:

    1. Tian Liang & Bin Yang & Chenning Deng & Ping Du & Tuqiang Wang & Hongxing Zhou & Panpan Wang & Jingjing Yu & Aizhong Ding & Fujun Ma & Qingbao Gu & Fasheng Li, 2022. "Diffusion of Cement Kiln Co-Processing of Contaminated Soil in Selected Provinces of China: Engineering Practices, Modeling, and Driving Factors," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-13, November.
    2. Olabi, A.G. & Obaideen, Khaled & Elsaid, Khaled & Wilberforce, Tabbi & Sayed, Enas Taha & Maghrabie, Hussein M. & Abdelkareem, Mohammad Ali, 2022. "Assessment of the pre-combustion carbon capture contribution into sustainable development goals SDGs using novel indicators," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    3. Minwoo Hyun & Aleh Cherp & Jessica Jewell & Yeong Jae Kim & Jiyong Eom, 2021. "Feasibility trade-offs in decarbonisation of power sector with high coal dependence: A case of Korea," Papers 2111.02872, arXiv.org.
    4. Ma, Huan & Sun, Qinghan & Chen, Lei & Chen, Qun & Zhao, Tian & He, Kelun & Xu, Fei & Min, Yong & Wang, Shunjiang & Zhou, Guiping, 2023. "Cogeneration transition for energy system decarbonization: From basic to flexible and complementary multi-energy sources," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 187(C).

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