China’s carbon neutrality
target is building momentum for
carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), by which the power
sector may attain faster decarbonization in the short term. However,
an overall CCUS pipeline network blueprint remains poorly understood.
This study, for the first time, links the China TIMES model and ChinaCCUS
Decision Support System 2.0 to assess representative CCUS layouts
for the power sector toward carbon neutrality, with the level of deployment
and the maximum transportation distance from emission sources to storage
sites considered. The total length of the proposed layouts under the
low, medium, and high levels of deployment are about 5100, 18,000,
and 37,000 km, with the annum CO2 captures of 0.4, 1.1,
and 1.7 Gt, respectively, whereas pipes of medium diameters (12, 16,
and 20 in) account for the majority in all three plans. As the deployment
rate increases, the layouts generally spread from Northeast, North,
and Northwest China to East, South Central, and Southwest China. However,
some local exceptions take place considering terrain areas that the
pipeline passes through. In addition to engineering guidance, this
assessment also illuminates the opportunity for improving the efficiency
of CCUS based on carbon pricing.