Adjusted carbon intensity in China: Trend, driver, and network

As a widely used indicator, carbon intensity (CI) may be overestimated because of the efficiency loss in the production process, while the corresponding complex network remains largely disregarded. This study constructed an adjusted CI (ACI) indicator by considering the technical efficiency using a non-radial directional distance function during 1997–2017 across 30 provinces in China. We showed that provincial ACI exhibited a downward trend with roughly similar trajectories of CI over the study period. Decomposition analysis implied that efficiency gains and energy intensity mainly decreased ACI, whereas the carbon factor accounted for the increase in ACI. Furthermore, social network analysis indicated that the previous hierarchical ACI spatial association structure was broken to a certain extent, thereby enhancing the network stability. This study illustrated the possible feasibility of setting up ACI-based emission reduction targets and policies, especially for economies undergoing rapid transition.