Research on Carbon Abatement Strategies of Airport Based on LEAP-Airport Model

Achieving airport carbon emission peak is crucial for the civil aviation industry to reach carbon emission peak on schedule for airports are important infrastructure of air transportation. The LEAP-Airport model is developed based on the Low Emissions Analysis Platform (LEAP) model to forecast long-term carbon emissions of airport. Taking Nanjing Lukou International Airport as an example, 11 scenarios in 6 categories are set up according to abatement strategies, which are grouped into operational improvements, structural optimization, technological progress, and alternative fuels strategy. By simulating carbon emission trends from 2023 to 2035 under different scenarios based on the LEAP-Airport model, this paper analyses the effectiveness of various abatement strategies, providing a basis for formulating carbon abatement strategy for the airport. The results show that the Lukou airport will not be able to reach the carbon emission peak on schedule if no emission reduction measures were taken; the airport will still not be able to achieve the carbon peak target if the emission reduction efforts were made according to the existing policies; the airport is expected to achieve the carbon peak in 2030 with 574 thousand tons if the abatement measures were strengthened on the basis of the existing policies. Among the four types of airport emission reduction strategies, technological progress and alternative fuels strategies should be implemented as a priority, and the strength of existing policies should be increased to reduce emissions to achieve the peak target on time.