Utilization Methods of Renewable Electricity
Renewable electricity utilization primarily encompasses three directions: direct power supply, energy conversion/storage, and end-use substitution. Specific technical pathways and implementation cases are as follows:
I. Power Generation & Direct Supply
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Large-scale Power Generation
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Centralized Power Plants: Construct large-scale photovoltaic (PV) bases (e.g., desert PV) and offshore wind farms in resource-rich areas, connecting bulk generation to the main grid412.
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Distributed Energy: Promote rooftop PV + energy storage systems to enable self-consumption for industrial, commercial, and residential users, alleviating grid pressure413. Example: Tudianzi Village, Hubei, achieved 100% clean power supply via rooftop PV13.
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Diverse Generation Technologies
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Solar: PV panels directly convert light into electricity; Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) uses mirrors to heat a working fluid to drive turbines6.
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Wind: Wind turbines convert kinetic energy into mechanical energy, which generators then convert into electricity27.
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Biomass/Geothermal: Utilize biogas (e.g., from livestock manure conversion) or geothermal steam to drive turbine generators613.
II. Energy Conversion & Storage
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Power-to-X (P2X) Technologies
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Use surplus electricity for water electrolysis to produce green hydrogen, further synthesized into green ammonia, green methanol, or other chemical products/fuels11.
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Electro-catalytically combine CO₂ and hydrogen to synthesize high-value chemical feedstocks (e.g., ethylene)11.
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Energy Storage for Peak Shaving
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Physical Storage: Build pumped hydro storage plants (e.g., Hebei Fengning 1200MW project) to balance grid fluctuations4.
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Electrochemical Storage: Deploy battery energy storage systems (BESS), such as lithium-ion, to enhance PV/wind integration (e.g., Anji County's 300 MWh storage pool)12.
III. End-Use Substitution
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Transportation Electrification
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Promote electric passenger vehicles, commercial trucks, and agricultural machinery to replace fossil-fueled vehicles10.
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Utilize green hydrogen in fuel cell vehicles for fully zero-carbon transport11.
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Industrial Decarbonization
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Replace fossil power with green electricity, e.g., hydrogen-based direct reduced iron (DRI) for steelmaking4.
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Adopt electric heating or green hydrogen for high-temperature industrial processes10.
IV. Enabling Systems
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Smart Grids: Deploy demand response systems and virtual power plant (VPP) platforms to optimize source-grid-load-storage coordination4.
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Market Mechanisms: Implement green certificate trading and mandatory renewable quotas to incentivize green power use by energy-intensive enterprises412.
Exemplary Cases:
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Anji County, Zhejiang: Achieved 85% of primary energy consumption growth from renewables and a local consumption rate of 40.8% through agrivoltaics, grid-side storage, and green power trading mechanisms12.
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Tudianzi Village, Hubei: Became a net-zero carbon energy output village via a "PV + biogas power generation" circular model13.
