Technological Pathways for Decarbonizing Petroleum Refining

This research paper examines technical pathways for decarbonizing petroleum refineries in the United States to support the national goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. It analyzes the use of fuel switching, electrification, and carbon capture to reduce facility emissions and suggests a long-term transition toward processing renewable feedstocks for hard-to-abate transportation sectors.

• Petroleum refining is a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S., accounting for roughly 13% of industrial emissions and 3% of total U.S. emissions. Decarbonizing these facilities could reduce nearly 3 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and improve local air quality by targeting emissions from refining processes and on-site heat generation.
• Refineries can achieve deep decarbonization through a combination of current and novel technologies: switching from fossil fuels to low- and zero-carbon hydrogen for heat demands, electrifying low-to-medium-grade heating, and utilizing carbon capture and storage for process emissions.
• In the long term, refineries could transition from crude oil to renewable feedstocks to produce synthetic fuels for trucking, shipping, and aviation, which could lower fuel carbon intensities by as much as 80%.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). Technological Pathways for Decarbonizing Petroleum Refining. https://www.wri.org/research/technological-pathways-decarbonizing-petroleum-refining

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Technological Pathways for Decarbonizing Petroleum Refining. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/technological-pathways-decarbonizing-petroleum-refining.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Technological Pathways for Decarbonizing Petroleum Refining |url=https://www.wri.org/research/technological-pathways-decarbonizing-petroleum-refining |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendtechnological, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Technological Pathways for Decarbonizing Petroleum Refining}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/technological-pathways-decarbonizing-petroleum-refining}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }