China's R&D of advanced ultra-supercritical coal-fired power generation for addressing climate change

Climate change is today's common challenge faced by all humanity. The accumulated carbon dioxide emissions from the fossil fuels consumption have resulted in significant global warming. Among the commercial-ready technologies, the advanced ultra-supercritical (USC) technology is the most convenient solution for coal-fired power generation to address CO2 mitigation, especially in countries where electricity generation is primarily dependent upon coal. This paper reported the research and development of advanced ultra-supercritical technology in China in the past ten years and its technology roadmap. The USC R&D has suffered three stages: technology introduction, absorption, and innovation. Its characteristic is the transition to higher live steam parameters, larger capacity, and steam double-reheat. Except for the introduction of several milestones in China's USC development, emphasis was placed on the first 1000 MW double-reheat USC unit in the Taizhou Power Plant and ongoing research for a future 700 °C USC program. This paper provided a status report on the progress achieved to date in China.