Variables for technical parameters of secondary-energy technologies

danielhuppmann commented 1 year ago

Per a discussion with @HauHe, we should add variables for reporting technical parameters (e.g., lifetime, capex, efficiency) for all conversion-technologies at the secondary level (power plants, hydrogen) similar to the variables used in the openENTRANCE project.

PhilippVerpoort commented 11 months ago

Hello all!

I will try to kick-start the discussion on the issue proposed by @danielhuppmann, which seems to be one of the core issues of subgroup 6 working on techno-economics.

First, let's look at what already exists and what are common practices in the community.

In REMIND, we currently report the following variables (see at the end of this comment).
Similar variables seem to exist in the NAVIGATE and ENGAGE templates, but the ones that are collected under Tech|...| in REMIND are each given as a main entry in those templates (Efficiency|..., OM Cost|...).
I don't know about the openENTRANCE project, but perhaps someone with access to the template could paste a list of variables in here?

Second, having worked on techno-economics quite a bit in the past, I don't know how sensible the current structure (see REMIND example below) actually is. The pipe-connected (i.e. ...|...|...) hierarchical order of variables makes more sense for variables that decompose into elements that add up (in fact, the different hierarchies correspond to different dimensions of the same measurement). In contrast, it might make much more sense for the techno-economic variables to go for a flat ordering and perhaps use explicit technology names instead.

For instance, is Tech|Hydrogen|Electricity|Capital Costs such a clear and useful name? Wouldn't Tech|Electrolysis|Capital Costs not be much clearer? The only advantage I would see in keeping the hierarchical order is to retain the option of having averages, e.g. Tech|Hydrogen|Capital Costs (i.e. average over all Hydrogen technologies, blue, green, black, biomass, etc), but I'm unsure how useful this is given these suboptions are actually often vastly different things. Such averages also don't seem to be reported yet. In other instances, the technology is mentioned explicitly following the hierarchical list of energy carriers (e.g. Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|... and Tech|Electricity|Gas|Gas Turbine|... or Tech|Heat|Electricity|Heat Pump|...), which I find a bit clumsy without adding much value. In the instance of DAC, the person who added it to REMIND clearly didn't know which energy carriers to associate it with, which resulted in simply Tech|DAC|... (i.e. what I'm proposing).

Long story short: I wonder whether it might help the readability to give specific names to certain technologies rather than to refer to them implicitly via hierarchical orders of energy carriers. (Instead, the technologies could be arranged hierarchically based on different sectors, e.g. Tech|Energy conversion|... or Tech|Industry|....) This would mean we have to agree on specific names for technologies. Moreover, it would also have implications for other variables such as Capacity|....

As promised above, here is a list of techno-economic variables currently reported by REMIND:

Tech|CO2 Storage|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|CO2 Storage|Lifetime
Tech|CO2 Storage|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|DAC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|DAC|Lifetime
Tech|DAC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Biomass|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/ CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Gasification Combined Cycle w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/ CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/ CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/ CC|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/ CC|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/ CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/ CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Coal|Pulverised Coal w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/ CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/ CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/ CC|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/ CC|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/ CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/ CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Gas Turbine|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Gas Turbine|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Gas Turbine|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Gas Turbine|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Gas Turbine|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Gas Turbine|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Geothermal|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Geothermal|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Geothermal|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Geothermal|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Geothermal|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Geothermal|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Hydrogen|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Hydrogen|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Hydrogen|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Hydrogen|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Hydrogen|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Hydrogen|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Hydro|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Hydro|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Hydro|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Hydro|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Hydro|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Hydro|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Nuclear|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Nuclear|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Nuclear|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Nuclear|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Nuclear|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Nuclear|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Oil|DOT|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Oil|DOT|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Oil|DOT|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Oil|DOT|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Oil|DOT|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Oil|DOT|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Solar|CSP|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Solar|CSP|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Solar|CSP|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Solar|CSP|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Solar|CSP|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Solar|CSP|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Solar|PV|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Solar|PV|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Solar|PV|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Solar|PV|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Solar|PV|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Solar|PV|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For CSP|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For CSP|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For CSP|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For CSP|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For CSP|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For CSP|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For PV|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For PV|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For PV|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For PV|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For PV|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For PV|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Offshore|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Offshore|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Offshore|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Offshore|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Offshore|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Offshore|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Onshore|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Onshore|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Onshore|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Onshore|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Onshore|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Storage|Battery|For Wind Onshore|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Offshore|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Offshore|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Offshore|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Offshore|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Offshore|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Offshore|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Onshore|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Onshore|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Onshore|Efficiency
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Onshore|Lifetime
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Onshore|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Electricity|Wind|Onshore|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Gases|Biomass|w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Gases|Biomass|w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Gases|Biomass|w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Gases|Biomass|w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Gases|Biomass|w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Gases|Biomass|w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Gases|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Gases|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Gases|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Gases|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Gases|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Gases|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Gases|Hydrogen|Capital Costs
Tech|Gases|Hydrogen|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Gases|Hydrogen|Efficiency
Tech|Gases|Hydrogen|Lifetime
Tech|Gases|Hydrogen|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Gases|Hydrogen|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Heat|Biomass|Capital Costs
Tech|Heat|Biomass|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Heat|Biomass|Efficiency
Tech|Heat|Biomass|Lifetime
Tech|Heat|Biomass|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Heat|Biomass|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Heat|Coal|Capital Costs
Tech|Heat|Coal|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Heat|Coal|Efficiency
Tech|Heat|Coal|Lifetime
Tech|Heat|Coal|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Heat|Coal|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Heat|Electricity|Heat Pump|Capital Costs
Tech|Heat|Electricity|Heat Pump|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Heat|Electricity|Heat Pump|Efficiency
Tech|Heat|Electricity|Heat Pump|Lifetime
Tech|Heat|Electricity|Heat Pump|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Heat|Electricity|Heat Pump|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Heat|Gas|Capital Costs
Tech|Heat|Gas|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Heat|Gas|Efficiency
Tech|Heat|Gas|Lifetime
Tech|Heat|Gas|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Heat|Gas|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/ CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/ CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/ CC|Efficiency
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/ CC|Lifetime
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/ CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/ CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Hydrogen|Biomass|w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/ CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/ CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/ CC|Efficiency
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/ CC|Lifetime
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/ CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/ CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Hydrogen|Coal|w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Hydrogen|Electricity|Capital Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Electricity|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Electricity|Efficiency
Tech|Hydrogen|Electricity|Lifetime
Tech|Hydrogen|Electricity|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Hydrogen|Electricity|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/ CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/ CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/ CC|Efficiency
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/ CC|Lifetime
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/ CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/ CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Hydrogen|Gas|w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/ CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/ CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/ CC|Efficiency
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/ CC|Lifetime
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/ CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/ CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|BioFTR|w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Biodiesel|w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Biodiesel|w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Biodiesel|w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Biodiesel|w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Biodiesel|w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Biodiesel|w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Cellulosic|w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Cellulosic|w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Cellulosic|w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Cellulosic|w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Cellulosic|w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Cellulosic|w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Conventional Ethanol|Capital Costs
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Conventional Ethanol|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Conventional Ethanol|Efficiency
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Conventional Ethanol|Lifetime
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Conventional Ethanol|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Liquids|Biomass|Conventional Ethanol|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/ CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/ CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/ CC|Efficiency
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/ CC|Lifetime
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/ CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/ CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|Efficiency
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|Lifetime
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Coal|w/o CC|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Oil|Capital Costs
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Oil|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Oil|Efficiency
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Oil|Lifetime
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Oil|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Liquids|Fossil|Oil|OM Cost|variable
Tech|Liquids|Hydrogen|Capital Costs
Tech|Liquids|Hydrogen|Capital Costs|w/ Adj Costs
Tech|Liquids|Hydrogen|Efficiency
Tech|Liquids|Hydrogen|Lifetime
Tech|Liquids|Hydrogen|OM Cost|fixed
Tech|Liquids|Hydrogen|OM Cost|variable

cchrisgong commented 10 months ago

Thanks, Philipp! My short reaction would be: 1) the name like "Tech|Hydrogen|Electricity|Capital Costs" follows REMIND technology mapping logic, which is defined using two objects, the first is product, second is input, in this case, "electricity input, H2 output". renaming it to "electrolysis" though is intuitive, it would lose the direct connection to the other parts of the reporting for the same technologies. Following the same structure could make it easier to plot something like "breakdown and average of green H2 cost by sources of electricity side by side with sources of green H2 by capacities of power input" (although we haven't done anything nearly so fancy, and not sure we ever will). One suggestion I have (although I am not sure how easy it is to implement), would be to have a second column with more intuitive names like "Electrolyzer capital cost". This column can be called "human readable name" or something like that, so people not familiar with REMIND can find it easily. We can also just create another mif called "generic_XXX_betternames.mif"? We have a with Plus and no Plus version of the same mif, so I don't see why we can't generate something like this on the side

2) I imagine due to difference in capacity factors, "Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|" and "Tech|Heat|Gas|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|" would be different? not sure if I understood you on the co-generation plant.. These would be capital cost of gas CHP in heat production and the capital cost of gas CHP in electricity production. This is one reason it might get confusing if we get rid of the hierarchies... but we can have a second column or another file with mapped names (but then we have more files an dnames to keep track of)

PhilippVerpoort commented 10 months ago

Like I suggested in my email, let's discuss this in a meeting. However, just a few brief reactions:

As you mentioned, the current logic of the (REMIND and partly IAMC) variable format is to map each technology onto one input and one output. That logic is somewhat flawed:

The mapping is not injective: there are multiple technologies with the same inputs and outputs (see above; there are many examples).
The mapping is not well defined: there may be multiple inputs and outputs per technology.

Problem 1 makes variable names unnecessarily long. These

Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Cycle w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Electricity|Gas|Gas Turbine|Capital Costs

could have simply been these:

Tech|Combined Cycle w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Combined Heat and Power w/o CC|Capital Costs
Tech|Gas Turbine|Capital Costs

Problem 2 may cause ambiguity. DAC plants proposed today mostly consume heat. There are however promising pilots that purely consume electricity (electro-swing adsorption). So, should DAC be "Tech|Capture CO2|Electricity" or rather "Tech|Capture CO2|Heat"? Same question for the many co-productions and synthesis processes: how to define which their main input and main output is?

Moreover, there are technologies with unclear inputs and outputs, like battery storage or hydrogen storage.

More generally, another problem with the logic in REMIND and the variable reporting seems to be that all technologies have only one input and one output, such that it is sufficient to report the |Efficiency. We know that there are many technologies that have multiple inputs and/or multiple outputs.

Therefore, I would suggest to rather turn the reporting around as such:

Tech|DAC|Capital Costs
Tech|DAC|OM Cost Fixed
Tech|DAC|OM Cost Variable
Tech|DAC|Lifetime
Tech|DAC|Input|Electricity
Tech|DAC|Input|Heat
Tech|DAC|Output|Captured CO2

and scrap the |Efficiency tag, which I find imprecise and misleading. It's even unclear what efficiency should be for, e.g. in DAC, converting MWh of Electricity into tonnes of CO₂, since the units have different dimensions and are thus incompatible. By defining technologies in the way outlined above, there is a clear mapping between technology names, all their inputs, outputs, and other parameters.

I get your point about retaining the direct connection to other reporting and following the same hierarchy as with the other variables. However, (a) I find the example you mentioned unlikely to be relevant or to get used by many people, and (b) I find that connection already broken by the fact that variables Tech|Hydrogen and Tech|Hydrogen|Electricity has now clear interpretation, unlike for other reporting.

One could additionally have certain technology parameters as top-level variables and then follow the valid logic of disaggregation with increasing numbers of dimensions added as piped suffixes like in the NAVIGATE and ENGAGE templates:

- Capital Cost|Gases|Coal|w/ CCS:
- Capital Cost|Gases|Coal|w/ CCS|1:
- Capital Cost|Gases|Coal|w/ CCS|2:
- Capital Cost|Gases|Coal|w/ CCS|3:
...
- Capital Cost|Gases|Coal|w/ CCS|10:

Though, there are many open questions for me:

Is there a necessity then to further subdivide this according to PE, SE, and FE?
How is the aggregation of all sub-technologies determined? Is it weighted by the share of the input or output carrier produced?

Just a few thoughts. Looking forward to discuss in a meeting.

volker-krey commented 10 months ago

Apologies for joining this discussion late. I don't find the suggestion of adding a Tech first level variable name particularly as this introduces a kind of folder concept which is absent in other part of the template and from my perspective makes variable names unnecessarily long. The first level variable typically defines what the variable is about (e.g., "Capital Cost", "Primary Energy"). I would also suggest to stick with definitions that are compatible with previously used names unless there is a good reason for it (e.g., does not match statistics, expanding variable not possible due lack of generality).

ouyang363 commented 10 months ago

Sorry for being late into this conversation, and I've been catching up on all the prior insightful discussions. Before we delve deeper into the technical aspects, I'd like to propose a few overarching principles for us to consider:

1) Echoing Volker’s point, it’s wise to adhere to definitions that align with previously established terms, unless there's a compelling reason to deviate. I believe this principle promotes consistency and clarity.

2) To ensure broad comparability and compatibility in the future DB (I suppose this is building for future AR7 DB), I recommend initiating our efforts with a "common" template that's widely recognized across various models. Given that the AR6 template has garnered contributions from a diverse range of models—including those emerging outside the EU that might not have engaged with the more recent ENGAGE or NEGATE runs—it seems like a fine starting point.

3) For comparability and inclusivity, it might be beneficial to moderate our focus on technology specifics. Ideally, the technological detail level should mirror that found within the "energy" categories (PE, SE, FE). For example, if the energy consumption data available to users only includes the total energy consumption across different DACs, then delving into the specifics of technologies like “electro-swing adsorption” might not add significant value. Our aim should be to capture collective insights rather than the minutiae better suited for individual models or specific studies. Coordination with the energy variable teams will be important here.

4) Considering the AR6 techno-economic variable list (attached by the end), it's notable that capital costs are categorized separately, while efficiency, lifetime, and O&M costs are grouped under "techno-economic" considerations. It might be more coherent to consolidate these into a single "techno-economic" category in future databases. Also, in general the AR6 variable structure, with its clear delineation (e.g., Capital Cost|Electricity|Coal|w/ CCS), provides a solid foundation, as our initial Tier 1 draft list.

5) Nonetheless, echoing the focus of previous discussion above, the current AR6 framework’s technology detail, particularly regarding energy efficiency, appears somewhat lacking. As we prioritize technologies, two additional notes worth mentioning: a) the potential to clarify through the "definition" column, in collaboration with the energy team for consistency, and b) I personally interested in learning the reporting ratio of these AR6 parameters at their current level of aggregation, which might offer insights into the participating models' detail and transparency. (I’ll check this myself and report to the group later).

6) With respect to the I-O approach used by REMIND (thanks Philipp), and considering that GCAM reports similar parameters, it would be insightful to explore how many other models could report similar parameters. I’m looking forward to learning from recent NEVAGE or ENGAGE exercises (if anyone can share some insights). Perhaps we could differentiate between a Tier-2 list for advanced models like REMIND and maintain a more "basic" Tier 1 list akin to the current AR6 variables.

Looking forward to more in-depth exchange in our coming meeting!

IAMconsortium / common-definitions

Variables for technical parameters of secondary-energy technologies #30