Currently, global technological innovation is unprecedentedly intensive and active, and the forms of technology and industry are undergoing systematic changes. Disruptive and systemic innovations in engineering science and technology have become the focus of strategic competition. Based on the development demand for engineering science and technology in China and the world trends of engineering science and technology development, this study proposes a strategic research method system that consists of economic forecasting, demand analysis, technology foresight, vision analysis, strategic architecture, technology roadmap, and policy selection. The study also predicts the economic and social development trends in China by 2040 and depicts nine visions of Chinese society in 2040. Based on the strategic research on the development of engineering science and technology in major fields, an overall strategic concept of engineering science and technology development is proposed centering on the nine visions, which involves promoting information technologies, reshaping the energy system, innovating industrial science and technologies, constructing the future cities, developing the blue economy, revitalizing agriculture and the rural areas, safeguarding the health of all the people, building a beautiful China, and constructing a safe China. An overall two-stage roadmap for engineering science and technology development between now and 2040 is also proposed. At the first stage, it is necessary to strengthen the industrial foundation and chain, achieve international leadership in major fields of engineering science and technology, and develop new areas and technologies with core competitiveness. At the second stage, it is suggested to focus on security, resilience, and original innovation and build a new technological ecosystem.
The solid-state battery is crucial for achieving the next-generation batteries that possess high energy density, high safety, long service life, and low cost. Major countries and regions are rapidly advancing the research and industrial application of solid-state batteries. This study reviews the development status of key material systems for solid-state batteries worldwide from the aspects of technological, industrial, and supporting systems. It analyzes the technical development paths, industrial scales, and supporting systems of solid-state batteries in countries and regions including the United States, Europe, Japan, and Republic of Korea, and summarizes the development status and goals of the key material system for solid-state batteries in China. Our study reveals that the solid-state batteries are currently in a promotion stage in China, facing challenges in terms of key raw materials, breakthroughs in critical scientific and technological bottlenecks, mass production, and industrial application. To promote the development of solid-state batteries in China, we propose the following suggestions: (1) adhering to an overall staged-development strategy for solid-state batteries, (2) establishing national-level development programs and major scientific and technological projects for solid-state batteries, (3) promoting the construction of technology research and development institutions for solid-state batteries, (4) encouraging the market application and industrial transformation of solid-state batteries, and (5) optimizing the solid-state battery ecosystem.
With the continuous breakthroughs in technologies such as artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, and new materials, China's humanoid robot industry is experiencing explosive growth. Technological innovation and supportive policies have fostered a diversified and competitive landscape. However, China's humanoid robot industry still faces significant challenges, including lagging core technologies, high difficulty in mass production, and obstacles to commercialization. This study explores the major subfields and technological frontiers of humanoid robotics, offering an in-depth analysis of global trends in policies, technologies, and industrial development. It examines the current state of humanoid robotics in China and identifies key opportunities and challenges. Furthermore, the study proposes strategic recommendations to address these challenges, focusing on technological innovation, pilot demonstration, improvement in laws and regulations, and policy support. Specifically, the research recommends encouraging breakthroughs in core technologies, strengthening industrial layout, building humanoid robot infrastructure, and implementing demonstrative projects. These efforts aim to help China's humanoid robot industry overcome technical challenges, improve its industrial ecosystem, and achieve large-scale production and commercialization, thereby enhancing the global competitiveness of the industry.
The proposal of carbon neutrality has accelerated the process of energy revolution and plays a significant role in promoting the development of emerging energy and building a modern energy system. This study focuses on three key fields: energy saving and carbon emission reduction; construction of a new power system; and carbon capture, storage and utilization. It sorts out nine trends in carbon neutrality worldwide and proposes the development vision and strategic goals for carbon neutrality toward 2040. Moreover, this study analyzes the challenges faced by carbon neutrality and proposes a development path for engineering science and technology in the key fields of carbon neutrality, which involves ten key technologies, nine key tasks, four major engineering projects, and three major science and technology projects. Furthermore, this study proposes four supporting measures: (1) strengthening the implementation and management of an energy-saving priority strategy, (2) promoting the development of advanced scientific instruments and the establishment of scientific platforms, (3) leveraging the role of central enterprises as the main force of innovation, and (3) reinforcing financial and tax support for the technique of carbon capture, utilization and storage, thereby providing references for the scientific research in the key fields of carbon neutrality in China.
China's marine equipment application technologies have developed rapidly in recent years; however, basic technologies remain weak. Accelerating the breakthroughs of key basic technologies for marine equipment is crucial for enhancing the marine strength of China. This study analyzes the development demand of China for marine equipment, summarizes the essence of key basic technologies of marine equipment, and clarifies the global frontiers and development trends of marine equipment technologies from three aspects: marine transportation equipment, marine resource development equipment, and marine scientific research equipment. Moreover, it reviews the development status and major problems of China's marine equipment technologies, identifies ten key basic technologies that have a significant impact on the marine equipment industry, and outlines the development goals, roadmap, and key tasks of these key basic technologies. Safeguard measures are further proposed, including (1) emphasizing basic technology research for marine equipment to strengthen the top-level design for innovation, (2) advancing the construction of a multi-dimensional collaborative innovation system for the key basic technologies, and (3) promoting the globalization of China-led marine technologies and equipment.
The medical foundation model performs efficient processing and pattern recognition of complex medical data based on a deep neural network architecture, providing a new type of decision support for intelligent medical care. It is necessary to systematically analyze the technologies and application of the medical foundation model, thus to identify the development directions and challenges and improve the capabilities of the medical care sector in medical text writing, medical image recognition, medical equipment research and development, and medical education using the medical foundation model. This study sorts out the technology paradigm and application scenarios of the medical foundation model and proposes a technology system and an evaluation system for the model. The technology system is composed of a base layer, a model layer, an application layer, and a common module. The evaluation system involves the establishment of an evaluation index system, dataset range and question types, model alignment methods, and model evaluation platforms. Moreover, application challenges of the medical foundation model are identified in terms of data security, technical risks, implementing challenges, and ethics. Furthermore, the following countermeasures are suggested: (1) ensuring data security through government guidance, (2) accelerating basic theoretical research to address technic risks, (3) focusing on application scenarios to cope with implementing challenges, (4) improving the ethics regulating mechanism, and (5) perfecting the public service system to create an innovation ecosystem, thereby accelerating the innovative development of the medical foundation model and promoting the high-end, intelligent, and green development of intelligent medical care in China.
Ecological environment monitoring is an essential foundation for ecological and environmental protection and will play a key role in building a grand ecological and environmental protection and governance framework. Although China has built a large-scale, comprehensive, and well-structured ecological environment monitoring network, it is insufficient to meet the major national demands of the new era, such as reducing pollution and carbon emissions, ecological protection and restoration, and addressing climate change. This study elaborates on the development demand of China for an ecological environment monitoring network system, outlining the current status of the system in terms of monitoring network, monitoring technologies and equipment, monitoring indicators, and monitoring applications. It further identifies existing problems, including the lack of an integrated ecological environment monitoring network, shortage of independent and advanced monitoring equipment, delayed development of indicators and insufficient data processing and sharing, as well as lack of an integrated coordination and support mechanism. The study argues for several key tasks to address these problems, including integrating the ecological environment monitoring network, advancing the independent development of monitoring technologies and equipment, unifying the monitoring indicator system, and integrating the applications of the ecological environment monitoring network. The study also proposes the following recommendations: (1) building an ecological environment monitoring system that integrates air, space, land, and sea, (2) promoting the independent research and development of monitoring equipment and its application, (3) establishing a new system for ecological environment monitoring standards, technologies, and services, (4) ensuring the healthy development of the integrated monitoring network system, and (5) launching major scientific projects and prioritizing monitoring applications in typical regions. This study is expected to serve as a reference for the research, construction, and application of the integrated ecological environment monitoring network system in China.
Artificial intelligence (AI) chips are the core hardware supporting the development of intelligent technologies and their technological advancements hold significant importance for national scientific innovation, industrial development, and economic growth. This study summarizes the global development trends of AI chips from three perspectives: cloud AI chips, edge AI chips, and neuromorphic chips. It analyzes the application demands of AI chips in China and reviews the current status and development trends of related industries and technologies from the aspects of chip design, manufacturing, and packaging and testing. Currently, AI chips manufactured in China have shortcomings in terms of performance, technologies, and supply chain, necessitating independent innovation and industrial collaboration. The development of these chips also encounters challenges such as high costs and long cycles, requiring stable financing channels and the accumulation of development experiences. Moreover, the AI chip sector in China suffers from a talent shortage, demanding improved training quality and better talent-retaining strategies. Accordingly, this study proposes development paths for China’s AI chip industry, including overcoming technical bottlenecks, accelerating industrialization, expanding internationalization, and implementing market support. Key measures include advancing technological innovation and major project development, fostering new chip architectures and open-source industry ecosystems, establishing technical standards, and promoting the integration of industry, education, and research. These efforts aim to drive the sustainable and high-quality development of China’s AI chip industry.
Aeronautical engineering science and technologies involve multiple disciplines, high technical risks, large capital investment, and long development cycles; therefore, a long-term, stable development strategy is needed to achieve breakthroughs regarding the key core technologies of aeronautical engineering science and technologies and to realize the sustainable development of the aeronautical industry. This study summarizes the global development trend and China's development status of aeronautical engineering science and technologies from four aspects: civil aircraft, aero engine, airborne system, and air traffic control system. It also identifies the development deficiencies in terms of basic research and technical reserves; system integration and product system research; aero engine technology; airborne system research, development, and testing; aeronautical maintenance capabilities; and industrial software and basic components. On this basis, a 20-year development vision for aeronautical engineering science and technologies in China is proposed, as well as key directions for future project deployment: supersonic passenger aircraft, high-speed rotorcraft, new energy aircraft, hybrid electric propulsion systems, next-generation air traffic control technologies, intelligent passenger aircraft, all-composite aero engines, and intelligent repair technologies for composite materials. Furthermore, the study suggests incorporating aeronautical power construction into national medium- and long-term strategic planning, strengthening the construction of a scientific and technological innovation system, enhancing interdisciplinary cooperation, and emphasizing international collaboration, thereby precisely supporting the development of aeronautical engineering science and technologies in the next 20 years..
The near space is crucial for national security; it is an important carrier for new combat forces and a new space domain for international cooperation and competition. By analyzing the significance of the near space, this study clarifies the new situation of near space development worldwide, summarizes the current status and existing problems of near space development in China, and proposes corresponding measures. Our research indicates that near space technologies are developing rapidly worldwide, countries around the world are continuously innovating in near space management exploration, and the global near space governance is accelerating. China leads the world in near space development in terms of technical strength, application strength, and support strength; however, it still faces some risks and challenges. Therefore, concerted efforts should be made from the following aspects: development strategy, key technology development and management, application technologies and engineering innovation, law guarantee, risk response, international governance, laboratory system construction, and talent cultivation, thereby enhancing the comprehensive competitiveness and influence of China in the field of near space.
The chemical and petrochemical industry is one of the pillar industries of the national economy. However, the energy and resource consumption, "three wastes" (i.e., waste gas, waste water, and industrial residue), and carbon emissions of the industry are large. Therefore, it is inevitable to accelerate the green and low-carbon transformation of the industry, thus to achieve high-quality industrial development and strengthen the petrochemical sector. This study analyzes the basic situation of the green and low-carbon transformation of the chemical and petrochemical industry from the perspectives of international consensus, domestic requirements, raw material changes, market constraints, technological evolution, and intelligent transformation. It also sorts out the development status of China's chemical and petrochemical industry from the aspects of industrial scale, industrial structure, resource utilization, pollutant emission, carbon emission, and industrial science and technology, and further reviews the prominent problems that restrict the green and low-carbon transformation of the industry. Moreover, the study proposes the key tasks for the green and low-carbon transformation of the industry, including innovation in green and low-carbon technologies; green transformation of the industrial structure; innovation in environment-friendly products; carbon peaking in key areas; green and low-carbon transformation for energy use; green, low-carbon, and clean production; digital and intelligent transformation; and green production demonstration; this aims to achieve a high-end industrial structure, low-carbon energy consumption, cyclic utilization of resources, clean production processes, green supply of products, and digital production mode. To this end, it is suggested that we should actively and steadily promote the carbon peaking and carbon neutralization goals, achieve carbon peaks in subdivided fields by stages, steadily promote the green transformation of the energy sector, and promote green and low-carbon transformation with active policies, thereby ensuring the green and low-carbon transformation of China's chemical and petrochemical industry.
Promoting green construction is an effective way for the construction industry to implement the national green development requirements, relieve the pressure on resources and environment, and achieve green and low-carbon transformation. It has been nearly 20 years since the concept of green construction was proposed and applied in China; remarkable progress has been made while distinct problems exist. Based on extensive investigation and research while considering the green development situation in the construction industry, this study expounds on the concept, implications, and development values of green construction, summarizes the development history and representative progress, and analyzes the major problems regarding green construction in China. The development of green construction should implement the concept of people-oriented development, taking builders, users, and related persons as the foremost in the construction process. Focus should be placed on the following leading directions: integration of the entire construction process, efficient utilization of resources, waste and carbon emission reduction, lean engineering management, intelligent construction process, and professional engineering operations. Breakthroughs should be achieved for key technologies regarding green construction, including lean construction, prefabricated construction, green low-carbon building materials and equipment, construction machinery automation, and working robots. The study suggests that the construction industry should promote the reforms of project management systems and mechanisms for green construction, strengthen the research and demonstration of green construction technologies, formulate mandatory standards for promoting green construction, and boost green construction education, thereby supporting the green and high-quality development of the construction industry.
Promoting the low-carbon and intelligent development of the metallurgical industry and establishing a low-carbon metallurgical industry system are crucial for ensuring national metal resource and energy security, strengthening the manufacturing sector, and supporting carbon reduction and ecological construction in China. Based on a global perspective, the metallurgical industry of China is still at a stage of low-end manufacturing. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct the top-level design to boost China's strength in metallurgical development, integrating the independent control of metal resources, intelligent manufacturing, environmental protection, and national security maintenance as an organic whole. This study summarizes the frontiers and development trends of metallurgical engineering science and technology worldwide, analyzes the development vision of metallurgical engineering science and technology in China, and proposes medium- and long-term strategic measures for China's metallurgical engineering technology development toward 2040, involving general development ideas, key strategic tasks, and main technology development directions. Furthermore, the following countermeasures are proposed: (1) developing disruptive technologies in the metallurgical field in advance, (2) integrating the industrial and innovation chains of the metallurgical industry, (3) building a sophisticated talent system, (4) improving the policy and standards systems, and (5) constructing driving forces for core technology development.
As one of the most important high-tech fields, the field of information and electronics has a significant impact on national competitiveness and has become a key area for all countries. Using literature analysis and investigation research, this study summarizes the advantages and problems of the information and electronics field in China and explores the key requirements for strengthening the information and electronics field. Facing the major demand of China for development strategies, this study devises development strategies for the information and electronics field and proposes development suggestions for the field from the aspects of strategic planning, systematic development, dual-carbon fusion, and talent development. Specifically, the suggestions include (1) implementing strategic planning to improve the systematic layout of the information and electronics field; (2) improving the fundamental support and frontier guiding capabilities of the information and electronics field; (3) accelerating the integration of industrial and innovation chains, focusing on boosting China's strength in cyber and digital sectors; and (4) strengthening the cultivation of professional personnel in basic research and technological engineering in the information and electronics field.
Actively responding to population aging, as an important national strategy of China, has a bearing on the overall situation of national development and the well-being of hundreds of millions of people, and is of great significance in promoting social harmony and stability, sustainable economic development, and the maintenance of social equity and justice. China has made a series of progress in coping with population aging. However, under the new situation of continuous deepening of the degree of aging, increasingly significant regional differences, further extension of the life expectancy of the population, continuous improvement of the quality of the elderly population, and development of emerging technologies, China is still faced with new challenges such as unbalanced socio-economic development, negative population growth aggravating the aging process, unhealthy longevity of the elderly population, lack of a sound health care service system, and the "digital divide" among the elderly. In the future, China needs to make further efforts to cope with population aging, including building a birth-friendly support system, improving the health service system, promoting the high-quality development of the social service system for the elderly, pushing forward the reform of the social security system oriented to healthy aging, building a support system for "active aging", pushing forward the high-quality development of the elderly health industry, and promoting engineering science and technology to help innovate services and products for the elderly, and creating a more friendly social environment.
The Research on the Technology Foresight of China's Engineering Science and Technologies Toward 2040 is jointly organized by the Chinese Academy of Engineering and the National Natural Science Foundation of China. As an important component of the research on China's engineering science and technology development strategy to 2040, it aims to predict the general trend of scientific and technological development and clarifying the key engineering science and technologies and development directions that may yield major breakthroughs. To improve the forward-looking and scientific nature of the technology foresight, this study evaluates the effectiveness of the technology foresight from two aspects: application of the technology foresight methodology and impact of the foresight results. Following the idea of emphasizing demand traction and vision drive as well as combining expert judgment and multi-source big data intelligent analysis, this study designed a methodology system, developed the intelligent Support System (iSS) for strategic studies on engineering science and technology, and constructed a standardized process centered on experts, supported by data, and facilitated by interaction, thus to push forward the implementation of the technology foresight. The study has formed a list of alternative technologies containing over 900 items in 11 fields, conducted two rounds of Delphi expert surveys, and proposed 110 domain core technologies, 25 key common technologies, and 21 disruptive technologies, thereby providing an important support for the research on China's engineering science and technology development strategy to 2040.
High-performance polymers have become a strategic material to ensure national security and national economic development owing to their excellent comprehensive properties. They have been widely applied in important fields such as aerospace, electronics, and medical devices. This study reviews the key varieties of high-performance polymers in four categories: high-performance resins and engineering plastics, organic fibers, bio-based resins and degradable materials, and special rubber and elastomers. The current status and characteristics of key high-performance polymers in China and abroad are analyzed. The study revealed that an industrialization system, including chemical raw material synthesis, modification, and product application, has been established in China. Besides, the current development challenges like the insufficient supply of key raw materials and limited development and application of products are discussed. Accordingly, relevant suggestion for technological innovation, key raw material security, and industrial innovation consortia construction are proposed, paving the way for the development of high-performance polymers in China.
It is expected that fusion energy development, which is at a critical stage of breaking through energy break-even in the engineering sense, has the potential to reshape the future pattern of energy development with both opportunities and challenges. This study reviews the main progress of fusion energy research and summarizes the major challenges regarding energy balance, tritium self-sustainability, high availability, development of irradiation-resistant materials, and economical efficiency in general sense. On the basis of sorting out the common basic technology breakthroughs of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) program and the supporting research activities of its member states, the study summarizes the progress of China's magnetic confinement fusion research in terms of overall planning, self-developed projects, and technical tracking. Furthermore, focusing on the Z-pinch-driven fusion-fission hybrid reactor (Z-FFR) concept, which is independently proposed by China, this study elaborates on the basic principles, application advantages, and series of progresses, and proposes a development plan toward commercial energy supply by 2040, covering the task objectives in the stages of key technology campaign, engineering demonstration, and promotion of commercial power generation. To comprehensively promote China's fusion energy development, several suggestions are given. In the magnetic confinement fusion area, it is suggest that China deeply participate in the ITER program and relevant international cooperation, overcome key physics and engineering technologies of commercial fusion reactors, promote the research and development of key components of China Fusion Engineering Test Reactor (CFETR) device, and construct and operate CFETR in due course. In the Z-FFR area, it is of first priority to start the construction of electromagnetic-driven large-scale scientific devices the soonest possible, develop key technologies for fusion energy, and promote both engineering demonstrations and commercial projects in proper time.
The operation and maintenance of power equipment is a crucial aspect of the construction of new power systems. The artificial intelligence large language model (AI-LLM) presents significant opportunities for the digital intelligence of traditional power equipment operation and maintenance. This study aims to explore the enabling role of multimodal AI-LLM in health assessment, operational state prediction, fault diagnosis, life prediction, and maintenance strategy recommendation, among other specific scenarios of power equipment operation and maintenance. Additionally, this study analyzes the challenges faced by multimodal AI-LLM in enabling power equipment operation and maintenance, including the varying quality of multimodal data, the "black box" nature of algorithms leading to low transparency in decision-making processes, and model performance deterioration induced by environmental changes. To address these challenges, this study combines knowledge graph retrieval-augmented generation, multimodal alignment, fine-tuning and continuous learning, and other big model application optimization techniques to construct an AI-LLM power equipment maintenance system. It then sorts out the implementation process of multimodal AI-LLM in the operation and maintenance of power equipment, covering four stages: demand analysis, model training, application deployment, and operational management. Furthermore, strategies for continuously optimizing model performance are proposed, including the continuous monitoring and optimization of data quality, use of continuous learning algorithms, and establishment of a feedback loop mechanism for model performance. Finally, this study explores the future directions for multimodal AI-LLM in the field of power equipment operation and maintenance and provides a series of implementation safeguards to promote the intelligent transformation of power equipment operation and maintenance and support the construction of new power systems.
Safety is the basis of human survival and development. Building a higher level of Peaceful China is crucial for achieving high-quality development in the new stage. This study aims to look forward to the long-term goals by 2040, thus to support the conception of development strategies as well as the deployment of engineering science and technology projects for the construction of public safety. Considering the new situations and technologies, this study analyzes the development status and the state-of-the-art level of public security science and technologies worldwide. Focusing on the aspects of natural disaster prevention, accident disaster prevention, safe and resilient cities, and comprehensive emergency management, this study analyzes the development needs of public safety science and technologies in China. Based on this, it proposes the idea, strategic objectives, and an overall framework for the development of public safety science and technologies in China and summarizes the development directions, covering key engineering tasks, basic research directions, and major engineering projects. With regard to the path of scientific and technological development in the field of public safety in China, development proposals are made in terms of policy and research systems.
The period before 2040 is crucial for boosting China's strength in agriculture. Agriculture is the foundation of a country, and the engineering science and technologies in agriculture provide a core support for guaranteeing national food security, revitalizing rural areas in an all-round way, and boosting China's strength in agriculture. Considering the prospect of economic and social development in 2040 and the development trend of engineering science and technologies in agriculture, this study focuses on analyzing the developmental demand for a solid foundation of food security, green agricultural development, and new quality productive forces in agriculture in the next 20 years, and proposes the strategic orientation, general principles, development paths, development goals, and key tasks of engineering science and technology development in agriculture. Furthermore, it proposes the following suggestions: (1) increasing the intensity of investment in agricultural scientific and technological innovation, (2) increasing support for agricultural basic research, (3) enhancing the innovation ability of agricultural enterprises, (4) strengthening the construction of talent teams regarding agricultural science and technologies, (5) accelerating the transformation and application of agricultural scientific and technological achievements, (6) increasing the deployment and construction of agricultural scientific and technological forces at the national level, (7) building a national scientific and technological innovation system, and (8) deepening international agricultural scientific and technological cooperation, so as to comprehensively enhance the independent innovation, international competitiveness, and sustainable development capabilities of agricultural science and technologies and promote high-quality agricultural development.
With population aging and lifestyle changes, the incidence of chronic diseases is on the rise, posing a significant challenge for public health and socio-economic development in China. To advance the Healthy China initiative, it is urgent to accelerate the establishment of chronic disease management strategies tailored to China and leverage cutting-edge information technologies to create innovative solutions for smart chronic-disease management. This study offers a comprehensive analysis of the current models and emerging trends of chronic disease management enabled by advanced technologies, and identifies challenges faced by China in smart chronic-disease management, including uneven resource allocation, slow progress in information technology infrastructure, and insufficient patient compliance. Based on these insights and aligned with the current healthcare management system in China, this study proposes an overall strategy for smart chronic-disease management that is patient-centered and characterized by a "three-tier vertical management at national, county, and community levels", "multi-end collaboration among healthcare providers, patients, and management agencies", and "intelligent technological assistance throughout the management process". Additionally, it outlines a comprehensive path for the realization of this strategy. The study illustrates the practical utility of the proposed strategy by examining two emblematic cases: the intelligent management of hypertension via physician-patient-administration collaboration and the integrative electrocardiograph interpretation employing a human-intelligence hybrid approach. In the future, it is recommended to develop a region-based integrated chronic-disease prevention and control model, formulate long-term plans for smart chronic-disease management, and optimize the industry chain to enhance the intelligence and efficiency of the community-level chronic-disease management services, thereby providing stronger safeguards for public health.
The sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) has three value attributes: environmental protection, energy transformation, and industrial layout optimization, and it is a key development area for aviation environmental governance internationally. China's SAF industry started relatively late, lacks independent technologies, and has an immature business model. It is currently in a critical period of transitioning from industrial demonstration to commercial application. Therefore, exploring the independent development of the SAF industry is crucial for promoting the green development of the civil aviation industry. This study identifies the various elements and their inherent connections that contribute to the development of the SAF industry and elucidates the environmental, energy, and economic values of the industry. Moreover, it sorts out the development pattern of the international SAF industry from two aspects: policy support and technological development progress, and summarizes the scale and mode, technology and cost, and policy mechanism of China's SAF industry. Furthermore, the study clarifies the development ideas and technology application plans of the industry and proposes the following development suggestions: (1) issuing industry regulatory frameworks to improve industry standards and norms, (2) increasing financial support by expanding tax incentives, and (3) strengthening technological innovation while exploring new business models. The study is expected to provide references for the implementation of the carbon peaking and carbon neutralization goals in China's civil aviation industry, as well as for the planning, technology research and development, and commercial application of the SAF industry, thereby promoting the sustainable development of the SAF industry.
Accelerating the planning and construction of a new energy system and building a new pattern of energy system development is crucial for ensuring national energy security and achieving green and low-carbon transformation in China. On the basis of reviewing the development course of China's energy system over the past ten years and grasping the current situation of the international energy field and the new goals of China's energy development, this study clarifies the implications of a new energy system that is "safe and efficient," "clean and low-carbon," "multi-dimensional and collaborative," and "intelligent and inclusive." It explores the new energy system from the aspects of total energy consumption and structural evolution, security guarantee of coal, increase in reserves and production of oil and gas, and cost reduction and efficiency improvement of non-fossil energy sources. Moreover, a development strategy of adhering to systematic thinking, innovation, and reforms is proposed, as well as the construction goals of the new energy system by 2035 and 2050. Furthermore, key measures for the construction of the new energy system are recommended, including (1) promoting the green and low-carbon transformation of the energy sector, (2) promoting the coordinated development of urban and rural energy systems, (3) building a multi-drive energy-supply system, (4) strengthening research on key core technologies, and (5) establishing a new energy-evaluation system. The study is expected to provide theoretical guidance and practical support for the construction of the new energy system.
Population aging brings challenges and opportunities for economic and social development, and developing the silver economy is an important means to promote the well-being of the seniors, actively respond to population aging, and promote high-quality economic and social development. Currently, China's market regarding the aging population presents the trends of an increasing scale of demand subjects, transformation and upgrading of the demand structure, and highlighting of personalized and digital demand, and faces prominent challenges including insufficient supply of products and services dedicated for the seniors, lack of technological and financial support, and inadequate policies and standards systems. This study summarizes the international experience in developing the silver economy to cope with population aging, i.e., emphasizing the application of science and technologies and smart senior care, improving the supply of products and services for the seniors, promoting technological and financial support, and improving policy designs and relevant standards. On this basis, we propose the following countermeasures to promote the development of China's silver economy: (1) strengthening the research and application of engineering science and technologies to respond to market demand, (2) optimizing the supply of products and services for the seniors to balance supply and demand, (3) developing aging-adapted technologies and pension finance to stimulate market vitality, and (4) improving policy designs and relevant standards to ensure orderly development.
Lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries are widely used in electric vehicles and energy storage applications owing to their excellent cycling stability, high safety, and low cost. The continuous increase in market holdings has drawn greater attention to the recycling of used LiFePO4 batteries. However, the inherent value attributes of LiFePO4 are not prominent and the comprehensive recycling technology faces significant barriers; therefore, high-value recovery of used LiFePO4 batteries remains a critical issue in the recycling of LiFePO4 batteries. This study summarizes the retirement and regeneration pathways of LiFePO4 batteries, reviewing the research progress in the regeneration of LiFePO4 cathode wastes from the perspectives of pretreatment and resource regeneration. It concludes that direct regeneration has greater application potentials but remains at an initial research stage while indirect regeneration is suitable for situations with complex raw materials or high-value resource reserves. Focusing on the industrial development of LiFePO4 cathode waste regeneration, this study identifies three key factors for industrialization: prerequisites for development, critical development aspects, and developmental guarantees. It showcases the short-range recycling technology for all components of LiFePO4, along with application cases of production lines at the scale of ten thousand tons. Furthermore, it elaborates on trends in the development of lithium-ion battery recycling technologies, including residual energy detection for retired batteries, intelligent disassembly pretreatment, and direct regeneration of cathode wastes. The challenges faced in the application of LiFePO4 battery recycling technologies include the complexity regarding raw material sources and usage conditions, the removal of various metal impurities, and the upgrading of cathode materials. Furthermore, the study proposes the following development recommendations: (1) establishing standardized management and efficient recovery channels, (2) accelerating breakthroughs in key technologies and their application conversion, and (3) enhancing publicity and promotion efforts to improve market acceptance. These strategies aim to streamline the innovation pathway of LiFePO4 batteries from fundamental research to industrialization, promoting LiFePO4 battery recycling and the green development of related industries.
Currently, the digital transformation of the financial industry in China has moved from multiple breakthroughs into a new stage of deepening and high-quality development, which necessitates a collaborative governance mechanism that coordinates multiple parties including governments, enterprises, and individuals. In view of the new, complex, and potentially harmful financial risks arising in the context of digital transformation, the financial industry urgently needs to improve its financial risk monitoring and early-warning capabilities to effectively protect financial security. This study analyzes the progress of digital transformation of the financial industry as well as the implications and characteristics of new financial risks through literature research and theoretical analysis. It also investigates the mainstream financial risk monitoring and early-warning technologies in China and abroad, and clarifies the prominent problems regarding risk characterization and recognition, transmission and tracking, and inference assessment. Furthermore, we propose the overall framework, innovative research methods, and improving paths for the financial risk monitoring and early-warning system in the context of digital transformation. This study reveals that financial risks have new characteristics in the context of digital transformation, such as faster update and iteration, higher risk frequency, and stronger concealment. Existing financial risk monitoring and early-warning technologies have numerous deficiencies and face multiple challenges in dealing with new financial risks, such as difficulty in characterizing, tracking, and assessing risks. Therefore, to improve the financial risk prevention capability of China and guarantee national financial security, it is proposed to develop cross-industry sharing standards for financial data, establish a knowledge representation paradigm and a cross-industry transmission mechanism of financial risks, and build a large model regarding financial risk monitoring and early warning.
Steel scraps are renewable resources and indispensable iron resources for the iron and steel industry. In the context of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, it is crucial to reconstruct the technology system for steel scrap recycling and utilization and innovate the management mode of steel scrap resources, so as to fundamentally crack the bottleneck of high-quality recycling and utilization of steel scraps for the green and low-carbon transformation of the iron and steel industry. This study analyzes the development status of the global steel scrap industry by comparison, predicts the changing trend of raw steel output and steel scrap resources in China, and proposes the possible existence of full steel scrap smelting in China around 2060. Moreover, the development directions of standardization, informatization, digitalization, and intelligentization of the steel scrap industry are summarized. The pressing problems and challenges regarding steel scrap recycling and utilization in China are systematically sorted out in terms of standards and institutional system, precise classification and recycling, material design based on extended producer responsibility (EPR), and digital identity parsing. On this basis, a new "4F5Z" pattern is innovatively proposed for the high-quality recycling and utilization of steel scrap resources, and its organizational framework and implementation strategy are clearly given. Specifically, the EPR system should be implemented in a coordinated manner toward a possible era of full steel scraps and from the aspects of the full life cycle, full production process, and full industrial chain ("4F") of steel materials, thus to realize the sorted management, recycling, and reuse of steel scrap resources. Meanwhile, the digitalization, informatization, labelling, and networking of full production process management should be strengthened and gradually transition to the robotization of high-quality steel scrap dismantling and recycling ("5Z"). Furthermore, to provide a solid guarantee for the full implementation of the "4F5Z" pattern, we propose the following suggestions: (1) improving the system, technology, and management for EPR implementation in the iron and steel industry, (2) strengthening the construction of a standards system for the steel scrap industry, (3) strengthening the digital labelling and analysis of the entire industrial chain and the whole life cycle of iron and steel materials, and (4) reinforcing the sorted collection, recycling, and reuse of steel scraps in key industries.
The near space serves as a transition area between airspace and the outer space, and it has unique strategic values and broad application prospects, attracting countries to compete for development. This study expounds on the characteristics of the near space and international community's views on the demarcation and definition of the near space. It analyzes the development trends and competitiveness of the near space field in major countries and regions such as the United States, Europe, and Russia. Moreover, risks regarding national security, flight safety, technological lag, and technology surprise are explored, as well as challenges faced by near-space development in China in terms of aircraft technologies, economic sustainability, and policies and regulations. Furthermore, countermeasures and suggestions for China to cope with international competition and achieve comprehensive development in the near space field are proposed, including: (1) strengthening the research on near-space defense technologies; (2) accelerating the formulation of flight safety standards and regulations; (3) overcoming bottlenecks that restrain aircraft research, development, and application; and (4) increasing the application of disruptive innovation technologies.
Vigorously developing new energy sources is an important approach to achieving the carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals. However, the randomness, volatility, and intermittency of new energy pose severe challenges to the supply-demand balance and stability of the electric power system. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop diversified flexible resources to guarantee the system's safe and stable operation. This study summarizes the electricity demand and the power structure development pathways in China under the carbon neutrality goal. Based on this, it analyzes the different flexibility demands of electric power systems with different proportions of wind and solar power generation capacities and elaborates on the characteristics of various types of flexible resources needed for power generation, transmission, load, and storage from four aspects: peak capacity (adequacy), ramping flexibility, stability, and inertia. Drawing from the international experience regarding flexible resource development, we propose the principles for flexible resource development: supply security guarantee, low-carbon development, and economic optimization. Considering the existing problems in the flexible resource development in China, we propose a flexible resource development pathway that aligns with the emission reduction goal of the power sector and the medium- to long-term development trend of the electric power structure of China. Furthermore, key initiatives to ensure the development of flexible resources are proposed from five aspects: power source, power grid, load, energy storage, and market mechanism.
