Bioplastics are expected to replace 80% of chemical plastics
2018-05-15 03:00:57
The 4th "Chinese and Foreign Multinational CEOs Round Table" was held on November 5-7 at the China World Hotel in Beijing. NetEase Finance is the featured media partner of the conference for live streaming. Representative Kevins, chief regional representative of the UNIDO office in China, attended the conference and delivered a keynote speech.
According to Kevins, we can use biomass energy. Some industries already use 100% non-carbon fuels, such as biomass, but we must also pay attention to not destroy vegetation and not destroy the biomass energy. This is why the forest was cut down by the United Kingdom during the first industrial boom. It was to be able to generate electricity and so on. Many of our chemicals are now made from oil, natural gas, and coal. Sooner or later, these chemical fuels will produce carbon dioxide. If we need organic compounds and do not want to produce carbon dioxide, we can or should use biomass energy, which is technically feasible. For example, it is expected that bioplastics can replace 80% of plastics made from chemical materials, and that by expanding the green vegetation through a large number of plantations, we can also reduce CO2 emissions in this area. However, we still need to do a lot of work in order to make these tools feasible on a large scale in the industry.
The following is a textual record:
Kevin Si: Ladies and gentlemen, Hello everyone, I am very happy to attend this meeting and participate in the discussion. Today I would like to talk about the new industry of low-carbon economy. First of all, I would like to talk about the first industry. The industrial industry began in my native country, Britain. The first industrial ** marked a tremendous change in the history of mankind. Every aspect of people’s lives has been affected, and average per capita income has greatly improved. The winner of the 1995 Nobel Prize in Economics said that this is the first time in human history that people's living standards have been greatly improved, and this has never happened before.
My family history is a good example. Industrial ** freed my family from poverty for centuries. My great-grandfather worked in the textile industry when he was very young. Finally he successfully started his own textile factory. . The first industry ** was based on steel, and in addition there were improved steam engines and coal, these are the three major factors of the first industrial **.
After that, our energy mainly relied on fossil energy, first coal, then oil, then natural gas, and this complete dependence on fossil fuels also caused the current climate change problem. Any long-term solution must consider the problem of decarbonization in the economy, that is, establishing a low-carbon economy. In the future, that is, in the next century, our economy should not use fossil fuels, coal, oil, and natural gas in all aspects. To achieve this goal, we must make the current industry responsible, because it is also caused by industry. The huge increase in carbon emissions now.
Therefore, this is also the connotation of the next industrial **, that is to change the mode of industrial operation, so that we can enjoy a good quality of life while manufacturing products and services. Can this be achieved? My answer is cautious optimism. Let me cite a few examples. Regarding the fields of coal, chemicals, and steel, these industries account for more than half of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions. For many developing countries, this is also a difficult task because they are very difficult. Imagine what kind of scenario it would be like to build their country without steel.
First look at the steel industry. We have seen significant growth in the area of ​​carbon emissions because in the process of manufacturing steel, carbon is needed to heat iron ore and extract iron. If we plan to remove all the technology, we will find that our ironmaking technology is almost the same as three thousand years, and we need to raise the iron ore to a very high temperature. If we change this chemical model for over a thousand years, we can remove pollution and remove carbon in the process. This will be revolutionary. There are two carbon-free technologies in technology, one is the use of hydrogen instead of carbon, but there is still a lot of work to be done to use hydrogen on a large scale in the industrial field.
First of all we have to ask ourselves where does hydrogen come from? Now when hydrogen is produced, carbohydrates are produced. This requires the production of carbon dioxide. If carbon is not wanted, it must be electrolyzed to generate electricity using renewable energy sources. In fact, hydrogen can play a large role in the heating process, causing the temperature to rise to a very high level. The problem is that we need to build a lot of infrastructure to make transportation and store hydrogen, and electricity is also a source of thermal energy. All these require the use of renewable energy.
Let me talk about the chemical process of iron. Interestingly, an electrolytic method can use very low temperatures. We can extract iron at such a high temperature as before, but to realize this, we still need to do a lot of work in large-scale industrial production. . In the cement field, we also have a lot of carbon. In the process of making cement, we need a heating and stirring process. The carbon emission is mainly from these chemical processes. The first step in the production of cement will produce carbon dioxide. However, we have to know that we are not using carbon dioxide in the production of cement, so we can still achieve carbon-free, but we have not found a good way. Now there are some means on the surface that can reduce carbon dioxide, but more carbon dioxide is produced in the extraction process, so many of the current methods are not feasible. Another problem is that the users of cement are relatively conservative. It takes a long time for them to change their behavior. And this will also cause them infrastructure failures, etc., causing huge losses.
Some of the methods I mentioned earlier can use lower temperatures, but these all require the use of renewable energy to generate electricity and then further decarbonization. We can also use biomass energy. Some industries already use 100% non-carbon fuels, such as biomass, but we must also pay attention to not destroy vegetation and destroy forests while building biomass energy. This is why At the time of the first industrial economy, the United Kingdom had cut a large number of forests in order to be able to generate electricity. Many of our chemicals are now made from oil, natural gas, and coal. Sooner or later, these chemical fuels will produce carbon dioxide. If we need organic compounds and do not want to produce carbon dioxide, we can or should use biomass energy, which is technically feasible. For example, it is expected that bioplastics can replace 80% of plastics made from chemical materials, and that by expanding the green vegetation through a large number of plantations, we can also reduce CO2 emissions in this area. However, we still need to do a lot of work in order to make these tools feasible on a large scale in the industry.
We have a lot of new technologies now, and these need the support and encouragement of the country. Only with the encouragement, these methods and methods can be developed, and China is very active in this field. I think China has also made a lot of efforts in this area. But it may be that everyone is secretive in these new areas, but I believe that China will certainly make a lot of efforts in R&D. When we discuss the low-carbon economy, we also have to discuss power generation inevitably. But because we are all familiar with the traditional way, I will not discuss it in depth.
Finally, I would like to say that in a low-carbon economy, electricity will play a very important role, and it may play a more important role than we think. The growing demand for electricity is very surprising. In terms of decarbonization, we still have a lot of work to do, and this is also a very tricky task, but it is not impossible. If we concentrate our wisdom, we can get rid of fossil energy, fossil raw materials, and build a low-carbon economy. . thank you all!
According to Kevins, we can use biomass energy. Some industries already use 100% non-carbon fuels, such as biomass, but we must also pay attention to not destroy vegetation and not destroy the biomass energy. This is why the forest was cut down by the United Kingdom during the first industrial boom. It was to be able to generate electricity and so on. Many of our chemicals are now made from oil, natural gas, and coal. Sooner or later, these chemical fuels will produce carbon dioxide. If we need organic compounds and do not want to produce carbon dioxide, we can or should use biomass energy, which is technically feasible. For example, it is expected that bioplastics can replace 80% of plastics made from chemical materials, and that by expanding the green vegetation through a large number of plantations, we can also reduce CO2 emissions in this area. However, we still need to do a lot of work in order to make these tools feasible on a large scale in the industry.
The following is a textual record:
Kevin Si: Ladies and gentlemen, Hello everyone, I am very happy to attend this meeting and participate in the discussion. Today I would like to talk about the new industry of low-carbon economy. First of all, I would like to talk about the first industry. The industrial industry began in my native country, Britain. The first industrial ** marked a tremendous change in the history of mankind. Every aspect of people’s lives has been affected, and average per capita income has greatly improved. The winner of the 1995 Nobel Prize in Economics said that this is the first time in human history that people's living standards have been greatly improved, and this has never happened before.
My family history is a good example. Industrial ** freed my family from poverty for centuries. My great-grandfather worked in the textile industry when he was very young. Finally he successfully started his own textile factory. . The first industry ** was based on steel, and in addition there were improved steam engines and coal, these are the three major factors of the first industrial **.
After that, our energy mainly relied on fossil energy, first coal, then oil, then natural gas, and this complete dependence on fossil fuels also caused the current climate change problem. Any long-term solution must consider the problem of decarbonization in the economy, that is, establishing a low-carbon economy. In the future, that is, in the next century, our economy should not use fossil fuels, coal, oil, and natural gas in all aspects. To achieve this goal, we must make the current industry responsible, because it is also caused by industry. The huge increase in carbon emissions now.
Therefore, this is also the connotation of the next industrial **, that is to change the mode of industrial operation, so that we can enjoy a good quality of life while manufacturing products and services. Can this be achieved? My answer is cautious optimism. Let me cite a few examples. Regarding the fields of coal, chemicals, and steel, these industries account for more than half of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions. For many developing countries, this is also a difficult task because they are very difficult. Imagine what kind of scenario it would be like to build their country without steel.
First look at the steel industry. We have seen significant growth in the area of ​​carbon emissions because in the process of manufacturing steel, carbon is needed to heat iron ore and extract iron. If we plan to remove all the technology, we will find that our ironmaking technology is almost the same as three thousand years, and we need to raise the iron ore to a very high temperature. If we change this chemical model for over a thousand years, we can remove pollution and remove carbon in the process. This will be revolutionary. There are two carbon-free technologies in technology, one is the use of hydrogen instead of carbon, but there is still a lot of work to be done to use hydrogen on a large scale in the industrial field.
First of all we have to ask ourselves where does hydrogen come from? Now when hydrogen is produced, carbohydrates are produced. This requires the production of carbon dioxide. If carbon is not wanted, it must be electrolyzed to generate electricity using renewable energy sources. In fact, hydrogen can play a large role in the heating process, causing the temperature to rise to a very high level. The problem is that we need to build a lot of infrastructure to make transportation and store hydrogen, and electricity is also a source of thermal energy. All these require the use of renewable energy.
Let me talk about the chemical process of iron. Interestingly, an electrolytic method can use very low temperatures. We can extract iron at such a high temperature as before, but to realize this, we still need to do a lot of work in large-scale industrial production. . In the cement field, we also have a lot of carbon. In the process of making cement, we need a heating and stirring process. The carbon emission is mainly from these chemical processes. The first step in the production of cement will produce carbon dioxide. However, we have to know that we are not using carbon dioxide in the production of cement, so we can still achieve carbon-free, but we have not found a good way. Now there are some means on the surface that can reduce carbon dioxide, but more carbon dioxide is produced in the extraction process, so many of the current methods are not feasible. Another problem is that the users of cement are relatively conservative. It takes a long time for them to change their behavior. And this will also cause them infrastructure failures, etc., causing huge losses.
Some of the methods I mentioned earlier can use lower temperatures, but these all require the use of renewable energy to generate electricity and then further decarbonization. We can also use biomass energy. Some industries already use 100% non-carbon fuels, such as biomass, but we must also pay attention to not destroy vegetation and destroy forests while building biomass energy. This is why At the time of the first industrial economy, the United Kingdom had cut a large number of forests in order to be able to generate electricity. Many of our chemicals are now made from oil, natural gas, and coal. Sooner or later, these chemical fuels will produce carbon dioxide. If we need organic compounds and do not want to produce carbon dioxide, we can or should use biomass energy, which is technically feasible. For example, it is expected that bioplastics can replace 80% of plastics made from chemical materials, and that by expanding the green vegetation through a large number of plantations, we can also reduce CO2 emissions in this area. However, we still need to do a lot of work in order to make these tools feasible on a large scale in the industry.
We have a lot of new technologies now, and these need the support and encouragement of the country. Only with the encouragement, these methods and methods can be developed, and China is very active in this field. I think China has also made a lot of efforts in this area. But it may be that everyone is secretive in these new areas, but I believe that China will certainly make a lot of efforts in R&D. When we discuss the low-carbon economy, we also have to discuss power generation inevitably. But because we are all familiar with the traditional way, I will not discuss it in depth.
Finally, I would like to say that in a low-carbon economy, electricity will play a very important role, and it may play a more important role than we think. The growing demand for electricity is very surprising. In terms of decarbonization, we still have a lot of work to do, and this is also a very tricky task, but it is not impossible. If we concentrate our wisdom, we can get rid of fossil energy, fossil raw materials, and build a low-carbon economy. . thank you all!