Export IMAGE
Reference card – IMAGE
About
Documentation: IMAGE documentation consists of a referencecard and detailed model documentation
Institution: PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL), Netherlands, https://www.pbl.nl/en.
Model link: https://models.pbl.nl/image
Name and version: IMAGE framework 3.0
Process state: published
Model scope and methods
Anticipation: Simulation modelling framework, without foresight. However, a simplified version of the energy/climate part of the model (called FAIR) can be run prior to running the framework to obtain data for climate policy simulations.
Geographical scope: Global
Model type: Integrated assessment model
Objective: IMAGE is an ecological-environmental model framework that simulates the environmental consequences of human activities worldwide. The objective of the IMAGE model is to explore the long- term dynamics and impacts of global changes that result. More specifically, the model aims
- to analyse interactions between human development and the natural environment to gain better insight into the processes of global environmental change;
- to identify response strategies to global environmental change based on assessment of options and
- to indicate key inter-linkages and associated levels of uncertainty in processes of global environmental change.
Policies: Emission tax, Emission pricing, Cap and trade, Fuel taxes, Portfolio standard, Capacity targets, Emission standards, Energy efficiency standards, Land protection, Pricing carbon stocks
Solution concept: Partial equilibrium (price elastic demand)
Solution horizon: Recursive dynamic (myopic)
Solution method: Simulation
Spatial dimension: Number of regions:26
Temporal dimension: Base year:1970, time steps:1-5 year time step, horizon: 2100
Time discounting type: Discount rate exogenous
Socio-economic drivers
Autonomous energy efficiency improvements: Yes (exogenous)
GDP: Yes (exogenous)
Income distribution: Yes (exogenous)
Population: Yes (exogenous)
Urbanization rate: Yes (exogenous)
Macro-economy
Energy
Behaviour: In the energy model, substitution among technologies is described in the model using the multinomial logit formulation. The multinomial logit model implies that the market share of a certain technology or fuel type depends on costs relative to competing technologies. The option with the lowest costs gets the largest market share, but in most cases not the full market. We interpret the latter as a representation of heterogeneity in the form of specific market niches for every technology or fuel.
CO2: Yes (aggregate)
Electricity: Yes (aggregate)
Electricity technologies: Coal w/o CCS, Coal w/ CCS, Gas w/o CCS, Gas w/ CCS, Oil w/o CCS, Oil w/ CCS, Bioenergy w/o CCS, Bioenergy w/ CCS, Geothermal power, Nuclear power, Solar power, Solar power-central PV, Solar power-CSP, Wind power, Wind power-onshore, Wind power-offshore, Hydroelectric power
Energy technology choice: Logit choice model
Energy technology deployment: Expansion and decline constraints, System integration constraints
Energy technology substitutability: Mostly high substitutability
Freight transportation: Freight trains, Heavy duty vehicles, Freight aircrafts, Freight ships
Gas: Yes (aggregate)
Heat generation: CHP (coupled heat and power), Coal heat, Natural gas heat, Oil heat, Biomass heat, Geothermal heat
Hydrogen: Yes (aggregate)
Hydrogen production: Electrolysis, Coal to hydrogen w/o CCS, Coal to hydrogen w/ CCS, Natural gas to hydrogen w/o CCS, Natural gas to hydrogen w/ CCS, Oil to hydrogen w/o CCS, Oil to hydrogen w/ CCS, Biomass to hydrogen w/o CCS, Biomass to hydrogen w/ CCS, Solar thermochemical hydrogen
Industry: Steel production, Cement production, Plastics production
Passenger transportation: Buses, Light Duty Vehicles (LDVs), Electric LDVs, Hydrogen LDVs, Hybrid LDVs, Gasoline LDVs, Diesel LDVs, Passenger trains, Passenger aircrafts
Refined gases: Biomass to gas w/o CCS, Biomass to gas w/ CCS
Refined liquids: Bioliquids w/o CCS, Bioliquids w/ CCS, Oil refining
Residential and commercial: Cooking, Refrigeration, Washing, Lighting, Space heating, Space cooling
Land-use
Agricultural commodities: Wheat, Rice, Oilseeds, Other coarse grains, Sugar crops, Ruminant meat, Non-ruminant meat and eggs, Dairy products
Agriculture and forestry demands: Agriculture food, Agriculture food crops, Agriculture food livestock, Agriculture feed crops, Agriculture feed livestock, Agriculture non-food, Agriculture non-food crops, Agriculture non-food livestock, Agriculture bioenergy, Agriculture residues, Forest industrial roundwood, Forest fuelwood, Forest residues
Land cover: Cropland, Forest, Pasture, Shrubland, Cropland irrigated, Cropland food crops, Cropland feed crops, Cropland energy crops, Managed forest, Natural forest, Built-up area
Emission, climate and impacts
Carbon dioxide removal: Bioenergy with CCS, Reforestation, Afforestation
Climate change impacts: Agriculture, Inequality, Energy supply, Energy demand
Climate indicators: Temperature change, Concentration: CO2, Concentration: CH4, Concentration: N2O, Concentration: Kyoto gases, Radiative forcing: CO2, Radiative forcing: CH4, Radiative forcing: N2O, Radiative forcing: F-gases, Radiative forcing: Kyoto gases, Radiative forcing: aerosols, Radiative forcing: land albedo, Radiative forcing: AN3A, Radiative forcing: total, Sea level rise
Co-Linkages: Biodiversity, Energy security: Fossil fuel imports & exports (region), Energy access: Household energy consumption, Air pollution & health: Source-based aerosol emissions, Air pollution & health: Health impacts of air Pollution
Greenhouse gases: HFCs, CFCs, SF6, PFCs, CO2 fossil fuels, CO2 cement, CO2 land use, CH4 energy, CH4 land use, CH4 other, N2O energy, N2O land use, N2O other
Pollutants: CO energy, CO land use, CO other, NOx energy, NOx land use, NOx other, VOC energy, VOC land use, VOC other, SO2 energy, SO2 land use, SO2 other, BC energy, BC land use, BC other, OC energy, OC land use, OC other, NH3 energy, NH3 land use, NH3 other