Unit exergy cost and specific CO₂ emissions of the electricity generation in the Netherlands

Exergy and environmental analyses have been developed to determine the performance of the electricity generation in the Dutch mix. A comparative assessment of diverse technological routes, including fossil and renewable energy resources consumption, is carried out in terms of the exergy costs and specific CO₂ emissions. Hence, an exergoeconomy methodology is used to properly allocate the renewable and non-renewable exergy costs and specific CO₂ emissions among the various products of the polygeneration energy systems. By using a suitable methodology, the distribution of irreversibility throughout the different steps of the energy conversion processes of the Dutch electricity mix is characterized in the light of the Second Law of Thermodynamics. The results may help to propose performance indicators that support the Dutch government and research institutions. To identify sustainable energy planning strategies and fairly comparing electricity generation and end-use processing stages with other types of energy resources, such as fuels used in transportation, residential and industrial sectors. In brief, the weighted average of the renewable and non-renewable unit exergy costs and the specific CO₂ emissions of the electricity generated in each route of the Dutch mix is calculated and compared to another electricity mix with a higher share of renewable energy resources. The weighted average renewable and non-renewable unit exergy costs of the electricity generated in the Netherlands are calculated as c_R = 0.8375 kJ/kJ_E/W and c_NR = 1.7180 kJ/kJ_E/W, respectively (c_R/c_NR= 0.49). Furthermore, the specific CO₂ emissions in the Dutch electricity generation achieve 373.21 g_CO2/kWh_E/W.