By Li Rui, People’s Daily
A man surnamed Lin, driving a new energy vehicle, was on his way from Jinan to his hometown Weifang, both in east China’s Shandong province. As the battery of his vehicle ran low, he pulled up in a service station along the Qingdao–Yinchuan Expressway.
Experience told him that a service station was a place where drivers and passengers could refuel vehicles, use the bathroom, grab a drink of water and have a meal. However, he found this service station a little bit different.
The Jinan East service station was a key carbon-zero station built by Shandong Hi-Speed Company Limited. It was put into operation on July 26, 2019. During China’s just-concluded National Day holiday, the service station received an average of 13,000 vehicles and 44,000 people on a daily basis.
“How long does it take for a vehicle to get 200 kilometers of range with this ultra-fast charging pole?” Lin asked a staff member of the service station.
“One second for one kilometer of range,” the staff member replied, pointing to an advertising board above that said “Get Fully Charged over a Cup of Coffee.”
Being skeptical about it, Lin scanned a QR code on the charging pole with his phone. Then, he unwound outside his car and went to get a cup of hot water. When he came back, he found his car fully charged.
The power level of the charging pole Lin used was 600 kW, and there were also charging poles of different models and power levels available for users to choose from at the service station.
The Jinan East service station covers an area of 300 mu, or 20 hectares. With so many charging poles in service, it consumes about 6,000 kWh of electricity each day. Where does such a huge load of electricity come from?
On the canopy, rows of solar panels were neatly paved. They were a part of a renewable energy utilization system – a 3.2 MW solar farm built on side slopes of the expressway, parking lot canopies and rooftops. The system also comes with a 3.2 MWh power storage facility.
At present, the service station generates an average of over 10,000 kWh of electricity on a daily basis, far exceeding its daily power consumption volume. This saves 1,200 tons of standard coal per year. The service station also transmits extra electricity to the power grid through safe and efficient means.
At noon, the fragrance of food was floating in the corridors of the crowded comprehensive building of the service station. As one of the busiest service stations in Shandong province, the Jinan East service station welcomes over 10 million passengers each year. How does it manage the wastewater generated by such a huge crowd?
In the “backyard” of the service station, there were two white bungalows at the corner of a tree lawn. Inside them, sewage treatment facilities were running, processing wastewater and pumping it back to the water tanks, which would be used for irrigation and floor washing.
The treatment system for waste and pollutant resources successfully addresses the challenges of the huge variation between water usage peaks and lows, as well as significant greenhouse gas emissions from sewage, effectively recycling and reusing treated water.
“In the past, diesel vehicles were used for service area operations and cleaning, but now they have been replaced with electric vehicles. The catering businesses have also undergone electrification upgrades for their gas stoves, replacing them with clean energy sources wherever possible,” a staff member said.
Carbon emissions are invisible and intangible. How are they measured?
Shandong Hi-Speed Company Limited has independently developed a smart energy management system, which builds a digital twin of the station and displays all relevant data on a screen, including daily electricity generation, charging station power, peak electricity generation periods, air conditioning usage and more.
It is learned that this zero-carbon smart energy management system collects data of all indirect carbon emission sources such as photovoltaics, energy storage, micro grids, lighting, HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning), and wastewater treatment. It can automatically calculate, make decisions, and intelligently control equipment.
For example, if the air conditioning is set at 26 degrees Celsius indoors, the system can automatically shut down some air conditioners when the temperature falls below this threshold, refining energy management and enabling intelligent equipment control.
According to real-time monitoring by the system, the service station emits an average of 2,060.97 tons of carbon dioxide per year. By planting over 19,000 square meters of greenery, the service station offsets greenhouse gas emissions.
Currently, the forestry area of the service station covers 67,000 square meters, or about 33 percent of the station’s total area. Through forestry carbon sequestration, the system helps reduce an annual average of 3,410.1 tons of carbon dioxide, with a forestry carbon sequestration volume of 53.4 tons of carbon dioxide, realizing “zero-carbon” operations. The service station now has the capability for sustainable carbon neutrality.
“So far, China has built nearly 4,000 pairs of expressway service stations. If we can promote zero-carbon experiences in more service stations, it would be of great significance,” said Zhou Pengfei, deputy director of the energy and environment department of Shandong Hi-Speed Company Limited.
Photo shows the Jinan East carbon-zero service station. (Photo provided by Shandong Hi-Speed Company Limited)
Photo shows the wastewater treatment facility of the Jinan East carbon-zero service station. (Photo provided by Shandong Hi-Speed Company Limited)
看一个高速服务区如何“零碳”运营？
人民日报记者 李 蕊
“电不多了，得赶紧充电。”林先生驾驶新能源汽车从山东济南赶往潍坊老家，行驶至青银高速K315公里处，他驶入济南东服务区。
传统印象中，服务区就是“加油、如厕、喝水、吃饭”的歇脚地，但林先生发现，这里有点不一样：碧草茵茵，绿树环绕，综合楼外墙点缀泉水图案。
青银高速济南东服务区是山东高速重点建设的零碳服务区，于2019年7月26日正式开放运营。今年国庆假期期间，济南东服务区日均入区车辆约1.3万辆，日均入区客流约4.4万人次。
“跑200公里，超快充需要充多久？”车停在一处充电桩前，林先生问工作人员。
“1秒钟，1公里。”工作人员指指头顶的牌子——一杯咖啡，满电出发。
“有这么快？”林先生半信半疑，掏出手机扫码“一键充电”，接着，他下车休息片刻，再去接杯热水，回来一瞧，车已经电量满满。
服务区里，型号、功率不同的充电桩依次排开，林先生使用的超快充充电桩功率达到600千瓦。车辆穿梭，司机可根据自身需要，选择不同型号、功率的充电桩自主充电。
济南东服务区占地300亩，规模大、遍布充电桩，日均用电量约6000千瓦时。电从哪里来？能供应充足吗？
车棚上方，一排排蓝黑色的光伏板整齐铺展。据介绍，服务区建有可再生能源利用系统，利用高速公路边坡、停车场和屋顶等，建成总装机容量3.2兆瓦的光伏电站，配套3.2兆瓦时储能设备。
现在，服务区日均发电量1万千瓦时以上，远超日均用电量，年节约标准煤1200吨。服务区自给自足、基本实现绿电供应，多余的电能通过安全、高效的方式输送给电网。
晌午，服务区综合楼内人流如织，走廊里弥漫着浓郁的饭菜香。这里是山东省内客流量最大的服务区之一，年接待顾客能达1000余万人次。人流量大，就会在运营中产生较多废水，如何处理？
在服务区的“后花园”，绿化带角落里有两间白色平房。推开门，污水处理设备正在运转，污水在这里经过一系列处理，达标后再流入回用水罐，用于园区绿化、冲洗地面等。
服务区打造的污废资源化处理系统，解决了服务区用水高峰低谷波动大、污水温室气体逸散大等难题，实现中水有效回收利用。
“以前，服务区运营、清扫用的都是柴油车，如今改用电动车；餐饮商家做饭的燃气锅灶也做了电气化改造，能用上清洁能源的都进行了替代。”工作人员介绍。
碳排放看不见、摸不着，怎么计量？
打开山东高速研发的具有自主知识产权的服务区能源智慧管控系统，一座数字孪生服务区出现在屏幕上，各系统运维情况一览无余：今日发电量、充电桩功率、发电高峰期、空调运行数量……一组组数据实时闪动、跳跃
据悉，该零碳智慧管控系统实现了与光伏、储能、微网、照明、暖通空调和污水处理等所有间接碳排放源的数据互通，系统可以自动计算、决策，智能操控设备。比如，如果空调以室内26摄氏度为基准，低于此温度时，系统可自动关闭部分空调，实现能源精细化管理、设备智慧化控制。
按照系统实时监测，服务区年均排放2060.97吨二氧化碳。服务区通过增植1.9万余平方米绿植，抵消温室气体排放。目前，服务区林业面积达6.7万平方米，绿化覆盖率达33%以上。通过林业碳汇提升系统年均减排3410.1吨二氧化碳，林业碳汇量53.4吨二氧化碳，已实现“零碳”运营。经过认证，服务区目前具备可持续碳中和能力。
“目前，中国已建成近4000对高速公路服务区，如果能将零碳服务区经验推广开来，意义重大。”山东高速集团能源环境部副部长周鹏飞说。
空中俯瞰济南东“零碳服务区”。 山东高速供图
服务区污水应急处理系统。 山东高速供图
