23 October 2008 | Luca Del Buono

 

The nickel industry produces less than one-tenth of one percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

By comparison, nickel is used in a multitude of innovative applications that are reducing greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.

In order to reduce GHG emissions over the next two decades, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has proposed five ways in which this can be achieved: replacing coal-fired plants with gas-fired plants, doubling the fuel efficiency of cars to 60 from 30 miles per gallon, doubling the capacity of nuclear plants globally, driving more cars on ethanol, and implementing carbon capture and carbon sequestration technology.

In the hope to find ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the Nickel Institute has been engaging in constructive dialogue with both government and the private sector about how nickel plays an invaluable role in helping to combat climate change.

All five ways listed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to reduce GHG emissions will require the use of nickel-containing materials ranging from superalloys in gas turbines, nickel metal hydride batteries in hybrid cars, corrosion-resistant nickel-containing alloys in nuclear power plants and nuclear waste containment systems to corrosion-resistant stainless steels in ethanol production plants and delivery systems; and corrosion-resistant alloys in carbon sequestration systems.There are less obvious ways that nickel is being used to safeguard the environment.

A nickel-containing stainless steel roof can help keep heat in during the winter and out in the summer and consequentially will reduce the building's life-cycle costs by extending its lifespan.

Such superior energy efficiency has prompted calls to amend the rules used to certify buildings under the LEED rating system (Leadership in Energy and Environment Design).

Nickel-containing materials are currently in use in the critical components of biogas projects throughout India.

These projects capture biogas to generate electricity, thereby utilizing a waste greenhouse gas and reducing demand in a developing part of the world for coal-fired plants (one of the IPCC's long-term goals, as stated above).

Although the nickel industry plays a role in contributing to the global greenhouse gas emissions of the world, with its multi faceted and wide usage in the battle to reducing greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, nickel is a big part of the solution to many of today's environmental problems.

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Source: Press release

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