基于生命周期评价的高寒高海拔露天金属矿山碳排放核算及降碳路径研究

Carbon emission accounting and decarbonization pathways for high-altitude and cold-region open-pit metal mines: A life cycle assessment approach

  • 摘要: 随着常规资源日益枯竭,高寒高海拔矿山的开发成为保障资源供给与推动产业升级的战略选择. 然而,在全球气候变化及“双碳”战略背景下,采矿业作为高能耗、高排放的重要基础产业,面临严峻的低碳转型挑战. 高寒高海拔矿区因低温低压环境导致燃料燃烧效率、炸药爆破效率及设备性能显著低于常规区域,需额外消耗能源并产生更高碳排放. 为精准、科学核算高寒高海拔露天金属矿山碳排放量,制定合理降碳路径,实现矿山开采设计源头减量. 本文基于生命周期评价框架,系统识别高寒高海拔露天矿山全流程碳排放源,界定采场尺度的碳排放核算边界,综合分析高海拔气压、氧气含量对燃料燃烧及爆破效果的约束机制. 基于分析结果构建了融合高海拔参数、设备性能参数、开采设计参数及碳排放因子的多因素耦合碳排放核算模型,揭示矿山全流程开采环节–设备运行–碳排放溯源的协同机制. 以新疆某高寒露天金属矿山为案例,开展模型应用及降碳路径优化分析,基于矿山三维块体模型定量评估单位质量矿岩排放量及全年排放总量,并结合矿山实际运营条件,从宏观政策调控与微观生产优化双重视角,提出适应高寒高海拔环境的低碳发展策略. 研究成果为高寒高海拔露天金属矿山碳排放核算、节能降耗及绿色转型提供了理论依据与数据支撑,对“双碳”目标下矿业绿色低碳发展具有重要参考价值.

     

    Abstract: Amid the depletion of conventional resources, the development of high-altitude cold-region mines has emerged as a strategic avenue to secure resource supplies and drive industrial upgrades. However, under the dual pressures of global climate change and the “dual carbon” (carbon peaking and carbon neutrality) goals, the mining industry—characterized by high energy consumption and substantial emissions—faces significant challenges in achieving a low-carbon transition. In high-altitude and cold-region mining areas, low-temperature and low-pressure environments significantly reduce fuel combustion efficiency, blasting performance, and equipment productivity, thereby increasing energy consumption and carbon emission intensity compared with conventional mining regions. To facilitate accurate and scientifically robust carbon accounting in high-altitude, cold-region open-pit metal mines—and to inform rational decarbonization pathways focused on source reduction in mine design—this study adopts a life cycle assessment framework to systematically identify emission sources across the entire production process and delineates the accounting boundaries at the mining field scale. A comprehensive analysis was conducted on the effects of high-altitude factors—specifically atmospheric pressure and oxygen concentration—on fuel combustion efficiency and blasting performance. Building on these insights, a multifactor-coupled carbon emissions accounting model was developed by integrating high-altitude environmental conditions, equipment performance metrics, mining design parameters, and carbon emission factors. This model elucidates the synergistic relationships among the various stages of mining operations, equipment functionality, and carbon emission traceability. The Sobol global sensitivity analysis method was employed to quantitatively evaluate the model sensitivity to input variability, enabling a robust assessment of the influence of each input parameter on the model output. The sensitivity analysis reveals that physical-mechanical parameters such as rock density, in conjunction with key operational factors such as equipment power and loading capacity, directly influence the carbon emission profile of the mining process. A high-altitude, cold-region, open-pit metal mine in Xinjiang was selected as a case study for model implementation and optimization of the decarbonization pathways. Using a three-dimensional block model, this study quantitatively assessed unit ore emission intensities and annual total emissions. The empirical findings demonstrate that seasonal climate variations, mining intensity fluctuations, and stripping ratios significantly influence overall carbon emission levels. In particular, fuel combustion and electricity consumption were identified as the primary emission sources, whereas transportation and crushing operations constituted the predominant contributors to total emissions. Under equivalent production conditions, high-altitude environments generated an additional 43183 t CO2 compared with that of conventional low-altitude regions. Based on the accounting and analysis of the case study, low-carbon development strategies for high-altitude and cold-region mines are proposed from both macro-policy and micro-production perspectives. At the micro level, strategic measures must focus on optimizing extraction schedules, upgrading electrically powered mining equipment, and designing energy-efficient haulage routes. At the macro level, policy recommendations must emphasize on promoting the substitution of fossil fuels with renewable energy sources, refining unified accounting standards, and implementing robust inspection and evaluation protocols. The multifactor-coupled carbon emission accounting model developed within the life cycle assessment framework provides a theoretical foundation and empirical reference for carbon accounting, energy conservation, consumption reduction, and the green transformation of high-altitude and cold-region open-pit metal mines. This study provides a valuable reference for informing the mining sector’s green and low-carbon development aligning with the “dual carbon” objectives.

     

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