Carbon reduction potential of wind and marine energy systems and their interactions

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Information on life-cycle carbon emissions can inform decisions on whether to invest in or provide policy support for different types of renewable technologies. Existing assessments of the life-cycle carbon of marine and far-offshore wind (such as floating wind) suggest that emissions are significantly higher than for more mature technologies, such as onshore wind, causing some to question whether investment in these new technologies is justified [1, 2, 3 ]. Life cycle assessments of embodied carbon, however, don't take into account the benefits that such technologies can provide in being available at different times to their competitors. The benefits of having a diverse supply mix are clear when considering a holistic view of the electricity system, and there is, therefore, a need to reflect such benefits in assessing the life cycle impacts.The challenge arises from existing life-cycle carbon estimates for renewable energy systems being focussed on emissions arising from the construction, maintenance and decommissioning of the generators themselves. The impacts are typically normalised per unit of energy produced and then compared with the impacts of other technologies, such as fossil generation or the average emissions of the grid, to demonstrate the likely carbon reduction potential. This comparison may be in the form of calculating the carbon payback time. This step makes an assumption about the types of existing generation that the new technology will displace; however, studies of the carbon emissions reduction of wind power have shown that such an assumption is a significant approximation [4, 5]. In reality, the displaced generation mix changes across days, seasons and years. Aims and ObjectivesThe key aim of this project is to examine the environmental benefits of diversity in renewable energy resource and understand whether these justify greater investment in marine and far-offshore wind. This will include:*Provide an overview of the life cycle carbon (and other environmental impacts) of a broad range of wind & marine systems*Develop a methodology to account for the carbon reduction potential of different interacting technologies *Identify the carbon reduction potential of far-offshore wind and marine operating on the British grid. *Investigate the interactions between temporal fluctuations in renewable resource and how these combine with technologies such as storage to meet demand with maximum possible carbon reduction.*Provide tools and guidelines for considering the holistic consequential impact on carbon emissions of wind & marine energy systems.