Domestic air conditioning has long been a “major energy consumer” and the focus of low carbon development in the refrigeration industry. There is a continued focus on how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the air conditioning and refrigeration sector through technological innovation in refrigeration.
Recently, at the Global Refrigeration Technology Innovation Grand Prix award ceremony, industry experts have said that as the world’s largest domestic air-conditioning market and domestic air-conditioning manufacturing countries, breakthroughs in the development and application of refrigeration technology, policy support, low-carbon development of China’s refrigeration industry is particularly important.
Refrigeration sector under pressure to reduce consumption and emissions
According to the International Energy Agency, by 2050, the global volume of household air conditioners may reach 4.5 billion units, and energy consumption will exceed 10% of the total global energy consumption. By that time, China’s domestic air conditioning stock will also reach one billion units.
“Global socio-economic development and climate warming are driving the demand for comfort cooling air conditioning, and the current global electricity load for air conditioning in large and medium-sized cities, which accounts for 40-60% of the peak summer load, has made the increase in the number of air conditioners one of the major global challenges in terms of electricity consumption and greenhouse gas growth. ” Jiang Yi, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and chairman of the Chinese Institute of Refrigeration, said.
Renewable Energy Policies in an Era of Energy Transition – Heating and Cooling, published by the International Energy Agency and others, states that “Heating and cooling account for about half of global energy consumption, and most of this energy comes from the inefficient use of fossil fuels or biomass, which accounts for more than 40% of global energy carbon emissions. The development of efficient heating and cooling technologies has therefore become a priority for countries to implement.”
It is understood that China’s refrigeration energy consumption is still facing the dilemma of high total volume and rapid growth, especially the need to address the climate impact of domestic air-conditioning refrigeration.
It is worth noting that on 16 April, China announced its acceptance of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which will strengthen the control of non-CO2 greenhouse gases such as HFCs. HFCs are the refrigerants commonly used in the refrigeration industry. Jiang Yi believes that this puts forward higher requirements for China’s refrigeration industry, and also brings great opportunities for the industry’s green development.
Some air conditioners are less than 20% efficient in cooling
According to Liu Yanhua, former Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and Technology, Director of the National Expert Committee on Climate Change, coping with climate change and achieving the goal of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality depends to a large extent on the improvement of the level of science and technology, especially the breakthrough of core technologies, and the improvement of the level of standards. The four major contributors to China’s energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions – electricity, industry, buildings and transport – are inseparable from refrigeration technology and equipment. It is estimated that global refrigeration accounts for around 10% of global electricity consumption. Advances in refrigeration technology are of great significance for energy saving and quality improvement.
“The current cooling efficiency of some household air-conditioning products on the market is less than 20% of the theoretical upper limit, compared to LED, solar photovoltaic, etc., the potential of air-conditioning refrigeration to be dug deeper.” Jiang Yi believes that China, as the world’s largest producer, consumer and exporter of refrigeration products, has the largest group of scientific and technical personnel in the field and should play a leading role in technological innovation.
The Development Status of Additional Features of Air Conditioners and Their Impact on Energy Efficiency, published by the Natural Resources Defense Council and the China National Institute of Standardization, among others, shows that additional features of different types of air conditioners have different impacts on energy efficiency. Therefore, encouraging the development and promotion of additional features that significantly improve performance and efficiency can help further improve the energy efficiency of air conditioners.
Support policies need to be strengthened
The clear goal of “carbon peaking and carbon neutral” has accelerated the process of carbon reduction in China. For the air conditioning and refrigeration industry, the main research directions include low GWP refrigerant replacement, reduction of actual emissions and improvement of equipment energy efficiency, which are also important challenges for the air conditioning and refrigeration sector in the coming period. ” said Wang Baolong, Professor of the Department of Building Technology Science at Tsinghua University.
“Emissions from the refrigeration sector come from carbon dioxide emissions from electricity use and production processes on the one hand, and from non-carbon dioxide greenhouse gas emissions such as refrigerants on the other.” According to Wang Baolong, the refrigeration industry should reduce emissions by restructuring energy use within the industry, as well as increasing the proportion of clean energy use. “For example, optimise energy use flexibility and increase the use of renewable electricity; reduce refrigerant leakage, promote the recovery, regeneration and reuse of refrigerants, and do a good job of refrigerant substitution.”
In the view of Ma Jin, Chief Engineer of Refrigeration at Huashang International Engineering Co Ltd, the refrigeration industry’s deep involvement in carbon emission reduction also requires increased policy support. “It is recommended that the refrigeration industry be included in the scope of carbon emissions trading management. At the same time, through taxation, credit, safety supervision, environmental protection and other policies to form a synergy, together to promote the industry’s carbon emission reduction process.”
Dong Mingzhu, Chairman and President of Gree, expressed similar views. She said that the country should accelerate the development of standards and technical specifications for “zero carbon development” in the refrigeration industry to promote the progress of the industry.