Title of Project

A Sustainable Source: Can solar power become the main power source for household use in China?

Research question

What is the relationship between Chinese solar energy’ accessibility & affordability and the imbalance between solar power and fossil fuel energy household consumption in China, according to Chinese citizens?

Researchers

Sergei Zagrebnev, Mina Cai, Caroline Fu

Sergei Zagrebnev

Mina Cai

Caroline Fu

Project summary

Our research tries to fulfill the existing knowledge gap in the Chinese household energy consumption system. By conducting a survey and doing a correlational study afterward, we are trying to investigate the impact of the current accessibility and affordability state of solar energy in China on the imbalance between solar energy and fossil fuel household consumption in China. We grouped our participants into different groups depending on their ages (young people, middle-aged adults, and seniors) and where they lived to obtain more detailed information (north and south China). The perceptions of accessibility and affordability between the imbalance of using fossil fuel and solar power as household consumption in China were studied using both online and paper surveys of Chinese residents. The paper-based survey will be conducted in four major Chinese cities, two in the north and two in the south.

Literature review

However, it is also important to identify what is this problem based on. According to both Zhou et al. (2018) and Li et al. (2007), with the development of solar power, the promotion of solar energy may effectively lead to the reduction of carbon emissions and coal generation efficiency. Zhou et al. (2018) stressed the growing demand for electricity in China, which leads to the importance of developing new energy sources, including solar energy, to replace fossil fuels, thereby reducing carbon dioxide emissions and protecting the environment from pollution. Their study also demonstrates the demand for electricity in different regions, and the quantity of carbon dioxide released by the people in these regions. Furthermore, due to the increased growth of renewable energy, they estimate that by 2050, carbon emission factors will drop by more than 30%. Compared with Li and his colleagues’ study (2007), their study lacks data on regions of solar energy use. The distribution and use of solar energy resources are detailed, demonstrating that China has abundant solar energy resources, particularly in the western and southeastern parts of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and that more than two-thirds of China receives more than 2000 h and 5000 MJ/m 2 in annual solar irradiation and hours, respectively (Li et al., 2007). This means that China has a wealth of natural resources to develop its solar energy system. However, unlike fossil fuels, which already have a well-developed system in China, solar power is still in its early stage. Over the previous 200 years, fossil fuel has closely interwoven with daily life in China, from manufacturing to infrastructure, transportation, and habitation. While, solar power is still not the dominant energy in China's energy system because of its intermittency and instability (Cheng, 2021). Moreover, solar panels are pricey for working-class people. As a result, the Chinese government significantly increase financial support through the Renewable Energy Law (Standaert, 2019), reducing pressure on poor rural areas and promoting solar power.

Knowledge gap

In general, prior work states that although solar energy in China is constantly developing, the process of decreasing the imbalance between solar energy use and fossil fuel consumption in China is taking longer than expected. Though the imbalance is steadily diminishing, China's usage of fossil fuels is expanding, which indicates that closing the gap between fossil fuel and solar energy consumption in China might take more than 50 years (Shukla, 2021). In addition, for current solar energy technology, the cost of building solar energy equipment is more expensive than the original fossil fuel, which makes most middle-class families willing to use the well-developed fossil fuel. Thus, solar energy was only accounting for 3.5% of China's total energy capacity in 2020 (Shukla, 2021).

Therefore, we can conclude that at the moment, based on the reasoning for the imbalance between fossil fuel energy and solar energy in China provided by the experts, there are inconsistencies in the area of accessibility and affordability of household solar energy consumption in China, which means that further research is required.

Reference

Li, Z.-S., Zhang, G.-Q., Li, D.-M., Zhou, J., Li, L.-J., & Li, L.-X. (2007, April 5). Application and development of solar energy in building industry and its prospects in China. Energy Policy. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301421507000493

Shukla, Harsh (21 January 2021). "China Adds 48.2 GW of Solar Capacity in 2020, its Second Best Year on Record". Mercom India. Archived from the original on 21 January 2021. Retrieved 6 June 2021.

Stauffer, N. (2015, June 25). How can China cut its carbon emissions? World Economic Forum. Retrieved February 14, 2022, from https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/06/how-can-china-cut-its-carbon-emissions/

Zhou, S., Wang, Y., Zhou, Y., Clarke, L. E., & Edmonds, J. A. (2018, January 16). Roles of wind and solar energy in China's power sector: Implications of intermittency constraints. Applied Energy. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261918300230