Energies 2021 , 14 , 1161
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roadmaps based on various alternative scenarios for the UK paper sector. The results of their study indicate that achieving a significant reduction in GHG emissions in the long term will depend on the adoption of some key technologies such as heat recovery techniques, energy efficiency improvements, use of bioenergy, and electrification (besides the decarbonization of grid electricity). Based on their assumptions, under a reasonable action scenario, the sector’s total greenhouse gas emissions would decrease by about 80% over the period 1990–2050 through the installation of all efficiency technologies by 2025 and the replacement of retired equipment with the best practice by 2030. The Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) [13] has been working to develop a roadmap for the transition to a competitive low-carbon economy in 2050. CEPI aims to reduce CO 2 emissions by 80% compared to 1990, and cut CO 2 emissions to 12 mil- lion tons (10 million tons direct), compared to 49 million tons (32 million tons direct) in 2015. CEPI also has a goal to reduce energy demand in the wood fiber industry by 20% and to increase product value by 50% by 2050, compared to the 2010 benchmark, using improved energy efficiency, fuel switching, and demand-side flexibility. They introduced a group of breakthrough technologies that can reduce CO 2 emissions in various areas from 20% (e.g., deep eutectic solvents technology) to 100% (100% electricity technology). These were presented in the report “Two Team Project”. 1.2. Open Research Questions and Structure of This Paper The previous section provided the current state of research that considered energy consumption and carbon emission reduction potential in the P&P sector. However, there are still some less addressed topics in the literature, which are discussed in this paper: • An energy flow Sankey diagram and allocation of the total, final and useful energy consumption • A bottom-up model for energy efficiency and CO 2 reduction potential for various P&P products and the sector as a whole • A comprehensive technology overview by considering the best available technology (BAT) and innovative technology (IT) • A bottom-up technology model and analysis of high-impact technologies toward the climate goal. To tackle the mentioned issues, this work considers the Austrian pulp and paper sector as a case study, and the possibility of decarbonization by 2050 is evaluated based on the following steps. In Section 2, an extensive literature review was made on the main processes and the state of the art in the industry, emphasizing the energy consumption of each step. In this section, the current situation of the Austrian P&P sector is also examined in terms of CO 2 emissions and energy consumption. Section 3 describes the methodology for model development to calculate CO 2 emissions and energy consumption at the process level for the different types of pulp and paper production. The model is based on a technology-based linear bottom-up approach, and will also be used in the next section to analyze decarbonization paths. Section 4 evaluates the opportunities and challenges of reducing carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and industrial energy demand in the Austrian P&P sector. In this section, based on the literature review, a technology database is presented in two groups: BAT and IT. Six promising technologies are selected from the database and explained with further details for the Austrian case. Subsequently, in Section 5, the technology-specific information is integrated into the bottom-up model to evaluate the decarbonization pathways and scenarios. The impact of energy efficiency and the emission reduction potential of each technology on the sector is investigated through six individual scenarios. Finally, Section 6 presents the conclusions of the most important results. These findings help to identify the steps that need to be taken by experts and policymakers to ensure the decarbonization of the Austrian paper sector.
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