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A crucial aspect of the energy and water nexus is reflected with the revelation of the surprisingly high amount of industrial water use induced by plant infrastructure of a pilot solar power generation system in China, by means of a concrete hybrid of process analysis and Input-Output analysis. With an inclusive collection of all the input items as products of the economy, this scoping distinguishes from existing accountings that either overlook the construction stage or simply cover the plant infrastructure of solar power system as some primary materials. Supported by embodied water database from input-output analysis, the industrial water use induced by each input item is fully addressed. The industrial water use induced by the solar power plant infrastructure is revealed to be over one order of magnitude higher than that in previous scoping: this magnitude approximately doubles the life cycle industrial freshwater withdrawal of typical coal-fired power generation system for per unit amount of electricity generated. Under the 2020 scenario raised in the newly issued 13th Five Year Plan for Renewable Energy Development , the annual industrial water use induced by solar thermal power infrastructure in China is accordingly estimated, in magnitude up to around 30% of the total industrial freshwater use in Beijing in the year 2014, one-fourth of that in Tianjin, and one-tenth of that in Shanxi, respectively. In the long term water-saving planning, the promotion of solar power installations is afforded further consideration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coal-based power generation accounts for over two fifths of global electricity supply and is supposed to be continuing its leading role in the coming decades. However, an integrated embodied energy accounting for typical coal-fired power system seems to be in its vacancy. To help erect a benchmark for energy analysis of electricity production, this study has for the first time established a complete inventory of energy inputs in the life cycle of a typical coal-fired power plant. Distinguished from previous works, with the support of ecological input–output database, this paper gives full consideration to the energy embodied in materials, equipment and services that have been traditionally neglected. The indirect energy cost is illustrated to be a non-negligible component, sharing around one-tenth of the total. This work could be a reference example for holistic energy evaluation of power generation systems worldwide. In current context of energy conservation and emissions abatement, it is of significant importance as the retrofitting of power generation systems may initiate large amounts of indirect energy cost. Besides, by calculating the nonrenewability indicator for the typical coal-fired power system, the energy saving potentials of several renewable alternatives are enunciated in this work. It may provide essential implications for policy makers in renewable deployment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]