Export IMAGE

Reference card – IMAGE

About

Documentation: IMAGE documentation consists of a referencecard and detailed model documentation

Institution: PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL), Netherlands, https://www.pbl.nl/en.

Model link: https://models.pbl.nl/image

Name and version: IMAGE framework 3.0

Process state: published

Model scope and methods

Anticipation: Simulation modelling framework, without foresight. However, a simplified version of the energy/climate part of the model (called FAIR) can be run prior to running the framework to obtain data for climate policy simulations.

Geographical scope: Global

Model type: Integrated assessment model

Objective: IMAGE is an ecological-environmental model framework that simulates the environmental consequences of human activities worldwide. The objective of the IMAGE model is to explore the long- term dynamics and impacts of global changes that result. More specifically, the model aims

1. to analyse interactions between human development and the natural environment to gain better insight into the processes of global environmental change;
2. to identify response strategies to global environmental change based on assessment of options and
3. to indicate key inter-linkages and associated levels of uncertainty in processes of global environmental change.

   Policies: Emission tax, Emission pricing, Cap and trade, Fuel taxes, Portfolio standard, Capacity targets, Emission standards, Energy efficiency standards, Land protection, Pricing carbon stocks

   Solution concept: Partial equilibrium (price elastic demand)

   Solution horizon: Recursive dynamic (myopic)

   Solution method: Simulation

   Spatial dimension: Number of regions:26

   Temporal dimension: Base year:1970, time steps:1-5 year time step, horizon: 2100

   Time discounting type: Discount rate exogenous

Socio-economic drivers

Autonomous energy efficiency improvements: Yes (exogenous)

GDP: Yes (exogenous)

Income distribution: Yes (exogenous)

Population: Yes (exogenous)

Urbanization rate: Yes (exogenous)

Energy

Behaviour: In the energy model, substitution among technologies is described in the model using the multinomial logit formulation. The multinomial logit model implies that the market share of a certain technology or fuel type depends on costs relative to competing technologies. The option with the lowest costs gets the largest market share, but in most cases not the full market. We interpret the latter as a representation of heterogeneity in the form of specific market niches for every technology or fuel.

CO2: Yes (aggregate)

Electricity: Yes (aggregate)

Electricity technologies: Coal w/o CCS, Coal w/ CCS, Gas w/o CCS, Gas w/ CCS, Oil w/o CCS, Oil w/ CCS, Bioenergy w/o CCS, Bioenergy w/ CCS, Geothermal power, Nuclear power, Solar power, Solar power-central PV, Solar power-CSP, Wind power, Wind power-onshore, Wind power-offshore, Hydroelectric power

Energy technology choice: Logit choice model

Energy technology deployment: Expansion and decline constraints, System integration constraints

Energy technology substitutability: Mostly high substitutability

Freight transportation: Freight trains, Heavy duty vehicles, Freight aircrafts, Freight ships

Gas: Yes (aggregate)

Heat generation: CHP (coupled heat and power), Coal heat, Natural gas heat, Oil heat, Biomass heat, Geothermal heat

Hydrogen: Yes (aggregate)

Hydrogen production: Electrolysis, Coal to hydrogen w/o CCS, Coal to hydrogen w/ CCS, Natural gas to hydrogen w/o CCS, Natural gas to hydrogen w/ CCS, Oil to hydrogen w/o CCS, Oil to hydrogen w/ CCS, Biomass to hydrogen w/o CCS, Biomass to hydrogen w/ CCS, Solar thermochemical hydrogen

Industry: Steel production, Cement production, Plastics production

Passenger transportation: Buses, Light Duty Vehicles (LDVs), Electric LDVs, Hydrogen LDVs, Hybrid LDVs, Gasoline LDVs, Diesel LDVs, Passenger trains, Passenger aircrafts

Refined gases: Biomass to gas w/o CCS, Biomass to gas w/ CCS

Refined liquids: Bioliquids w/o CCS, Bioliquids w/ CCS, Oil refining

Residential and commercial: Cooking, Refrigeration, Washing, Lighting, Space heating, Space cooling

Land-use

Agricultural commodities: Wheat, Rice, Oilseeds, Other coarse grains, Sugar crops, Ruminant meat, Non-ruminant meat and eggs, Dairy products

Agriculture and forestry demands: Agriculture food, Agriculture food crops, Agriculture food livestock, Agriculture feed crops, Agriculture feed livestock, Agriculture non-food, Agriculture non-food crops, Agriculture non-food livestock, Agriculture bioenergy, Agriculture residues, Forest industrial roundwood, Forest fuelwood, Forest residues

Land cover: Cropland, Forest, Pasture, Shrubland, Cropland irrigated, Cropland food crops, Cropland feed crops, Cropland energy crops, Managed forest, Natural forest, Built-up area

Emission, climate and impacts

Carbon dioxide removal: Bioenergy with CCS, Reforestation, Afforestation

Climate change impacts: Agriculture, Inequality, Energy supply, Energy demand

Climate indicators: Temperature change, Concentration: CO2, Concentration: CH4, Concentration: N2O, Concentration: Kyoto gases, Radiative forcing: CO2, Radiative forcing: CH4, Radiative forcing: N2O, Radiative forcing: F-gases, Radiative forcing: Kyoto gases, Radiative forcing: aerosols, Radiative forcing: land albedo, Radiative forcing: AN3A, Radiative forcing: total, Sea level rise

Co-Linkages: Biodiversity, Energy security: Fossil fuel imports & exports (region), Energy access: Household energy consumption, Air pollution & health: Source-based aerosol emissions, Air pollution & health: Health impacts of air Pollution

Greenhouse gases: HFCs, CFCs, SF6, PFCs, CO2 fossil fuels, CO2 cement, CO2 land use, CH4 energy, CH4 land use, CH4 other, N2O energy, N2O land use, N2O other

Pollutants: CO energy, CO land use, CO other, NOx energy, NOx land use, NOx other, VOC energy, VOC land use, VOC other, SO2 energy, SO2 land use, SO2 other, BC energy, BC land use, BC other, OC energy, OC land use, OC other, NH3 energy, NH3 land use, NH3 other