Life cycle based sustainability index of coal power plants in India

The use of coal will continue to meet the power demands for the next few decades in India. In this paper, the quantitative number called sustainability index (SI) for coal power plants is estimated on a life cycle basis by using a sequential combination of Analytic Hierarchy Process and Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution. Coal-based power plants along with gas, nuclear, hydro, solar photovoltaic, wind, and biomass-based power generation technologies are considered. The SI is estimated considering five dimensions of an energy system, namely, resource, energy, environment, economic and social, and fourteen criteria under these dimensions. A brief life cycle analysis of coal power plants is carried out to quantify all the fourteen criteria. The results show that the coal power plant ranks last among seven power plants and hence, SI has to be improved by using Advanced Coal Technologies (ACT). The development of indigenous ACT will increase efficiency, energy security, and decrease resource consumption as well as emissions. Further, the development of indigenous Carbon Capture Systems will avoid the CO2 emissions from the power plants. This study will help policymakers in developing a technology roadmap for optimal energy-mix in the country.