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Energy Procedia 105 (2017) 3456 – 3463

The 8th International Conference on Applied Energy – ICAE2016

Life Cycle Analysis of Distributed Energy System Projects’

Energy Consumption and GHG Emission – A Case of Beer
Brewery Auxiliary Power Supply in China
Liu Hansia, Zhang Xiongwenb,Ou Xunmina*
a
Institute of Energy, Environment and Economy, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
b
MOE Key Laboratory of Thermo-Fluid Science and Engineering, School of Energy & Power Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong
University, Xi’an 710049, China

A bstract

In this paper, we used Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) method to evaluate the energy consumption and GHG
emission of Distributed Energy System projects. We studied the China Resources Snow Breweries
Natural Gas Distributed Energy System project, and designed another 5 cases with different energy
pathways to compare their energy consumption and emission performance. The result shows the All
Natural Gas project saves 8% energy and reduces 38% GHG emission compared with tradition project
using coal and grid electricity. Although renewable energy projects’ emission reduction effect is not as
significant as that of All Natural Gas project, we found renewable energy projects have the potential to
develop in the future. We concluded that policy makers should support the development of gas based
distributed energy system projects and further research should be made to shed light on corporate’s
decision making.
© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
© 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Selection and/or
Peer-review peer-review of
under responsibility under responsibility
the scientific of ICAE
committee of the 8th International Conference on Applied Energy.

Keywords: Distributed Energy System; Life Cycle Analysis; GHG Emission; Energy Consumption; China

1. Introduction

1.1. The Growing Trend of Distributed Energy System Projects in China

Distributed Energy System can satisfy user’s various needs (heat, cooling and electricity) while
reducing the efficiency loss during energy transportation. Recent years the development of Distributed

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +86 13910731708. Fax: +86 10 62772758

E-mail address: ouxm@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn

1876-6102 © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 8th International Conference on Applied Energy.
doi:10.1016/j.egypro.2017.03.791
 Liu Hansi et al. / Energy Procedia 105 (2017) 3456 – 3463 3457

Energy System projects has been in a fast track. Distributed Energy System is an important part of the
13th five-year plan of China. The support from policy-makers makes the number of Distributed Energy
System projects grow fast. According to ICIS, a leading think tank in energy, 46 natural gas based
distributed energy system projects have been built in China, with another 16 projects expected to be built
by 2016.

Distributed Energy System is still in a ‘learning by doing’ stage, especially in China. The gap between
current projects and best practice makes evaluation of Distributed Energy System projects important.

1.2. Life Cycle Analysis Becomes a Main Stream of Evaluation Methods

Strachan N et al. [1] investigates the difference of emission between Distributed Energy System and
traditional energy system, providing insights about sensitivity factors like HPR (Heat-Power Ratio) and
discussing about several specific scenarios. The authors emphasized that the coefficients may vary across
time and the value of different projects are subject to the users’ demand and location, showing that case
studies are important in this stream of research. Romero et al. [2] investigates 5 cases (Distributed Energy
Systems in green buildings) in Spain and evaluates their performance. The research eliminates scenarios
of selling electricity to the grid and energy storage but includes scenarios of different fuel prices, using
LCA method to evaluate the influence on the environment. The research builds a framework of location-
weather-electricity demand/solar condition, contributing to the literature in the aspect of seasonality of
Distributes Energy System’s operation. Wheeley et al. [3] uses NPV calculation to evaluate the
performance of Heat-Electricity co-generation projects, with scenarios of selling residual fuel.

Recent researches are tailored to projects set in China. Projects in China are unique and interesting
because policy-makers are trying hard to promote Distributed Energy System projects, making the policy
environment of projects dynamic and fast-changing, and enabling researchers to compare different
scenarios with ample evidence. Gas based projects are researched in a full spectrum of aspects including
economic value, environmental value and other value. Ding Xiaochuan et al. [4] analyzes the economic
feasibility of natural gas based distributed energy system projects, simulating the prices of oil and gas as
well as the operating scenarios. The research makes several interesting assumptions to derive the break-
even point: the selling prices of heat and cooling are at their fuel costs; the prices of gas and electricity are
independent; the efficiency of Absorption type lithium bromide refrigerator and boilers is on average.
Wang Yanling et al. [5] research the comprehensive value of Gas-based Distributed Energy System
projects, with detailed calculation methods of economic value, user value, system value and
environmental value. Researchers [6-7] use machine configuration to simulate and compare the
environmental performance. To examine the environmental performance of real projects, Wang Weilin et
al. [8] makes a case study, comparing the emission of the project and that in an alternative case where
heat, cooling and electricity are provided individually. Renewable energy base projects are analyzed in a
different way. Since fuel costs and emissions are considerably small in renewable technology, energy
consumption and emission during life-cycle processes like machine production should not be neglected.
Thus, Life-Cycle Analysis (LCA) method is frequently used to analyze renewable energy based projects,
and the results provide solid foundation for further research in this field [9-14].

1.3. A Case Study of Beer Brewery Auxiliary Power Supply in Sichuan, China

The methodology of Distributed Energy System project evaluation is developed in these years.
However, case studies are also demanded in both academic literature and policy-making because 1) the
specific setting of Distributed Energy System project influences the economic feature of the technology
the project uses; 2) case studies provide more specific and realistic data to give insights about this type of
projects; and 3) specific setting in case studies helps researchers use more tailor-made assumptions to
examine more factors. In this paper, we examined the energy and environmental properties of China
Resources Snow Breweries Distributed Energy System project in Sichuan Province, China, which is the
3458 Liu Hansi et al. / Energy Procedia 105 (2017) 3456 – 3463

first Distributed Energy System project to provide electricity to the grid in China. As far as our
knowledge, we are the very first to evaluate this unique project, and provide policy guidance for more
projects alike.

1.4. Our Research Framework and the Organization of This Paper

Our research framework is based on Life Cycle Analysis (LCA). With output (electricity, heat and
cooling) held constant, we analyzed the input required by different technologies and compared life cycle
energy consumption and GHG emission. By comparing the results of these cases and doing sensitivity
analysis, we are able to provide policy guidance.

The paper is organized as follows: Part 2 introduced the research method of this paper, including
computation methods; Part 3 introduced the 6 cases we designed; Part 4 presented the data and
assumptions we used to derive the results; Part 5 made conclusions about Distributed Energy System
projects, including sensitivity analysis and policy implication.

2. Research Method

In this paper, we tried to analyze life cycle energy consumption and GHG emission of multiple types
of Distributed Energy System projects with different energy supply pathways.

With output (electricity, heat and cooling) held constant, the fuel energy consumption is calculated
given efficiency factors, and then life cycle energy consumption and GHG emission can be derived using
LCA results of former literature [9-14]. We derived the life cycle energy consumption and GHG emission
through the following 3 steps.

Step 1: Convert the output to energy input, as Eq. (1) shows. Ejk denotes the jth energy input (when
converted to electricity or heat) of the system in technology k (case k). Yijk is the ith type of output while
Cijk is its conversion ratio which is based on factors like machine energy efficiency.

Ejk =∑iYijk/Cijk (1)

Step 2: Use energy input to calculate life cycle energy consumption and GHG emission based on
former literature, as Eq. (2) shows. LCk denotes life cycle energy consumption of technology k, and aj is
the ratio of life cycle energy consumption to energy input j. As Eq. (3) shows, GHGk denotes life cycle
GHG emission of technology k, and bj is the ratio of life cycle GHG emission to energy input j. GHG
emission is measured as CO2 equivalent, as described in Eq. (3).

LCk=∑j Ejk *aj (2)

GHGk=EMCO2 +23EMCH4 +296EMN2O=Ejk*bj (3)

Step 3: Calculate the energy saving and emission reduction rate by comparing case k and case k’ based
on the above results, as described in Eq. (4-6). REkk’, RLCkk’, RGHGkk’ are the rate of energy saving, life
cycle energy saving and life cycle GHG emission reduction of case k compared to case k’.
 Liu Hansi et al. / Energy Procedia 105 (2017) 3456 – 3463 3459

REkk’=1-∑jEjk/∑jEjk’ (4)

RLCkk’=1-LCk/LCk’ (5)

RGHGkk’=1-GHGk/GHGk’ (6)

3. Case Design

We designed 6 cases to better capture the potential development of Distributed Energy System projects,
as Table 1 shows. Case 1 (All NG) is the base case. China Resources Snow Breweries Distributed Energy
System project operated in this model. We compared All NG case to traditional coal fired projects with
electricity bought from the grid or generated by private owned power plants. We also investigated the
efficiency of renewable technology by comparing several cases with renewable energy and the case with
electricity bought from the grid. Considering the location of the project where wind and solar power is
relatively scarce and vine lees is easy to get, we designed cases 4-6.

Table 1. Cases Designed in This Paper

Case Abbreviation Description

N o.
1 All NG Use natural gas to generate electricity, heat and cooling
2 Coal+Grid Use coal to generate heat and buy electricity from the grid to provide cooling
Electricity and satisfy electricity demand
3 All Coal Use coal to generate electricity and use the after heat to provide heat and
cooling
4 Local Solar Use local solar power to provide part of the electricity demanded, and then
Maximum follow Case 2
Utilization
5 Local Biomass (methane gas generated by wine lees ) energy provides the
Biomass electricity demand and cooling, and coal provides heat
Maximum
Utilization
6 Outside Use wind power supplied from the distant to provide electricity demand and
Wind cooling, and use coal to provide heat
Electricity

There are rationales behind our case setting. We set these cases where coal is burnt to generate heat
because coal is still the dominant energy used by central heating systems in China. According to China
Energy Flow Chart 2012, coal accounts for 85% of energy used in heating. Solar and biomass energy,
though limited, can satisfy part of electricity demand, and our results can quantify how much these new
energy models can benefit the climate. Local solar/biomass maximum utilization is economically
reasonable, and can reduce energy loss in transport and other processes. The endowment of Sichuan
province is unique, with little solar resource but even scarcer wind power. We can assume local solar
power provides part of the energy demand, leaving the rest satisfied by grid electricity. But for wind
power, this story won’t hold. According to OSGeo, a GIS lab, Sichuan has annual average wind speed of
1-2 m/s. The wind resource is negligible and the amount may fall below the threshold of economy, so
outside wind electricity from other provinces may be a good substitute. To differentiate distant wind
3460 Liu Hansi et al. / Energy Procedia 105 (2017) 3456 – 3463

power from local wind power, we assume a line loss rate of 10%.

4. Data and Assumption

4.1. Parameters and assumptions

We used IPCC data to calculate natural gas heat value (8900 Kcal/M3), and other data used in Stage 1
input conversion is presented in Table 2.

Table 2. Parameters and Assumptions in Different Cases and Processes

Case Electricity Heat and Cooling

1 All NG n/a n/a
2 Coal+Grid Efficiency 35% [8]
Electricity
3 All Coal Efficiency 35% [8]
4 Local Solar Solar Intensity 4000MJ/M2 (assumption);Area 7000
2
Maximum M (project info);Electricity-Solar Conversion Rate
Utilization 74% (assumption) Boiler Efficiency
5 Local Biomass Beer Production 100 thousand ton (project 80% [8];
Maximum info);White Beer/Methane Gas around 505 ml/g COP 4.5 [8]
Utilization [15];Wine Lees/Beer 2.5%
(assumption);Gas/Electricity Efficiency 34% (Solar
T70, project info)
6 Outside Wind Line Loss: 10% (Assumption)
Electricity

Note that we acquired data and made assumption in Case 4 and 5 to model the how much biomass
energy can be used in the Distributed Energy System Project. In Case 4, we calculated the electricity
provided by solar besides the grid. In Case 5, we made sure that the biomass energy can cover the
electricity demand and cooling load.

4.2. Life Cycle Analysis Results of Former Literature

Table 3. LCA Results of Former Literature

Life Cycle Energy Life Cycle GHG Sou

urce
C onsumption/Energy E mission/Energy
Input Input
MJ/MJ g/MJ
Refined Coal 1.2 104.5 [10]
Refined Natural 1.2 72.7 [10]
G as
Mid--China Grid 2.1 196.1 [16]
Electricity
 Liu Hansi et al. / Energy Procedia 105 (2017) 3456 – 3463 3461

S olar 0.5 0.0 [17]

Biomass-- 0.2 45.1 [18]
M ethane
W ind Power 0.0 6.0 [10]

5. Results and Discussion

5.1. Main Results

Table 4. Main Results of This Paper

Case Abbreviation Energy Life Cycle Life Cycle GHG

C onsumption E nergy E mission (CO2-
(10 3 GJ) Consumption E quivalent)
( 10 3 GJJ) ( 100 ton))
1 All NG 521.576 623.804 379.342
2 Coal + Grid 489.129 680.426 614.921
Electricity
3 All Coal 908.518 1064.783 949.401
4 Local Solar 489.129 646.952 574.292
Maximum Utilization
5 Local Biomass 489.129 468.584 443.848
Maximum Utilization
6 Outside Wind 501.716 440.489 400.309
Electricity

Fig.1. Energy Consumption and GHG Emission Reduction in Case Comparisons

As Table 4 and Figure 1 shows, in the base case gas based Distributed Energy System project has
desirable performance in environmental value. When compared with traditional project, gas based
Distributed Energy System project seems to use 7% more energy as input, but in a Life-Cycle view, it
reduces energy consumption and GHG emission significantly (8% and 38% respectively). Compared with
case when electricity is bought from the grid, it has even greater advantage. Renewable energy has the
potential to develop in the future. Constrained by solar resources in Sichuan Province, solar based
Distributed Energy System project has positive but limited effect in energy saving and emission reduction.
3462 Liu Hansi et al. / Energy Procedia 105 (2017) 3456 – 3463

Biomass energy can save life cycle energy consumption 31% compared to the All Coal case , but the
emission reduction rate is not as significant as that in the base case. Wind Power also has good emission
reduction effect. Wind Power reduces energy consumption and GHG emission significantly (35% and
35% respectively) compared to the All Coal case.

5.2. Sensitivity Analysis

As we mentioned above, we relied on data from literature to derive the results. To examine whether
our results are robust, we made sensitivity analysis focusing on refrigeration COP, and boiler efficiency.
As Fig.(2) shows COP doesn’t make a difference in performance of Distributed Energy System projects.
However, when boiler efficiency is set to be 60%, a more modest number, the performance of natural gas
based projects like the base case is even more outstanding.

Fig.2. Sensitivity Analysis: 1) COP (Case 1 versus 2); 2) Boiler Efficiency 60%

5.3. Conclusions and Policy Implication

The project we researched has outstanding performance in energy saving and emission reduction.
Comparing the case using coal and grid electricity, gas based Distributed Energy System project saves
8% energy and reduced GHG emission by 38% in a Life Cycle Analysis view. Renewable energy
technology provides alternatives to reduce GHG emission. Due to the environment of the project site,
solar energy can hardly improve the performance. However, it’s possible to utilize biomass (byproduct of
beer production) or wind power in the distant to improve the system. Thus, it shows renewable energy
technology, especially the integrated use of biomass and wind power, has great potential in the
development of Distributed Energy System projects.

Further research should be made to provide useful information for corporates’ decision making in
resource-seeking, technology use and fund raising. Policy makers should also support Distributed Energy
System projects to internalize the green benefit of them.

Acknowledgements

This work was funded by the National Nature Science Foundation of China
 Liu Hansi et al. / Energy Procedia 105 (2017) 3456 – 3463 3463

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Biography
Xunmin OU. Ph.D, Associate professor of Institute of Energy, Environment and Economy
(3E), Tsinghua University, Beijing, P.R. China. He serves as the Deputy Director of China
Automotive Energy Research Center of Tsinghua University and the Deputy Sectary General of
Energy System Engineering Committee of China Energy Research Society.