Water - MESSAGE-GLOBIOM: Difference between revisions
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Quantifying water implications of energy transitions is important for assessing long-term freshwater sustainability since large volumes of water are currently used throughout the energy sector. MESSAGE has been adapted to quantify the water impact of energy system transformation pathways developed in the global energy assessment (GEA | Quantifying water implications of energy transitions is important for assessing long-term freshwater sustainability since large volumes of water are currently used throughout the energy sector. MESSAGE has been adapted to quantify the water impact of energy system transformation pathways developed in the global energy assessment ([http://www.globalenergyassessment.org/ GEA]) (Fricko et al, 2016[[CiteRef::MSG-GLB_fricko_energy_2016]]). The GEA pathways were designed to describe transformative changes toward a more sustainable future, and include a 2 °C climate policy. The GEA scenarios were chosen for the water analysis because the broad range of energy transitions covered by the scenario space which provides an ideal platform to assess uncertainties in future water demand stemming from technology choices made in the energy sector. | ||
The majority of energy sector freshwater withdrawal occurs in the steam-cycle and cooling systems of thermoelectric generation, and MESSAGE-GLOBIOM assesses water use by thermoelectric power plants included in the model as a function of the thermal conversion efficiency. Once through and closed-loop cooling technologies are distinguished in the model. Once-through cooling technology, as the name suggests, involve passing water through the cooling system once, and then returning the water to its source. Conversely, closedloop systems re-circulate water that is withdrawn. The water source (fresh or saline) is further distinguished across technologies. Also air-cooled systems are considered, which provide an opportunity to reduce energy system reliance on water. The choice of model formulation enables consistent representation of water use across power plant types and incorporates water impacts of heat-rate improvements due to anticipated long-term technological change. Moreover, the approach enables analysis of thermal water pollution from once-through cooled thermal power plants by allowing quantification of the heat energy embodied in cooling system effluents. | |||
Revision as of 18:52, 14 October 2016
| Corresponding documentation | |
|---|---|
| Previous versions | |
| Model information | |
| Model link | |
| Institution | International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Austria, http://data.ene.iiasa.ac.at. |
| Solution concept | General equilibrium (closed economy) |
| Solution method | Optimization |
| Anticipation | |
Quantifying water implications of energy transitions is important for assessing long-term freshwater sustainability since large volumes of water are currently used throughout the energy sector. MESSAGE has been adapted to quantify the water impact of energy system transformation pathways developed in the global energy assessment (GEA) (Fricko et al, 2016MSG-GLB_fricko_energy_2016). The GEA pathways were designed to describe transformative changes toward a more sustainable future, and include a 2 °C climate policy. The GEA scenarios were chosen for the water analysis because the broad range of energy transitions covered by the scenario space which provides an ideal platform to assess uncertainties in future water demand stemming from technology choices made in the energy sector.
The majority of energy sector freshwater withdrawal occurs in the steam-cycle and cooling systems of thermoelectric generation, and MESSAGE-GLOBIOM assesses water use by thermoelectric power plants included in the model as a function of the thermal conversion efficiency. Once through and closed-loop cooling technologies are distinguished in the model. Once-through cooling technology, as the name suggests, involve passing water through the cooling system once, and then returning the water to its source. Conversely, closedloop systems re-circulate water that is withdrawn. The water source (fresh or saline) is further distinguished across technologies. Also air-cooled systems are considered, which provide an opportunity to reduce energy system reliance on water. The choice of model formulation enables consistent representation of water use across power plant types and incorporates water impacts of heat-rate improvements due to anticipated long-term technological change. Moreover, the approach enables analysis of thermal water pollution from once-through cooled thermal power plants by allowing quantification of the heat energy embodied in cooling system effluents.