The world's first commercial supercritical carbon dioxide power generator started operation in Southwest China's Guizhou province on Saturday, marking a significant milestone in the global transition toward high-efficiency waste heat recovery, said its operator China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC).

Known as Chaotan One, the new generator uses carbon dioxide instead of steam to transfer heat. It has been connected to the grid from a steel production plant in Guizhou to producing electricity from waste heat, addressing a long-standing technical bottleneck in the efficient utilization of small-to-medium scale thermal energy sources, it said.

According to CNNC, the system offers a drastic performance leap over traditional sintering waste heat steam power technologies currently in use, with overall power generation efficiency up by more than 85 percent and net electricity generation improved by over 50 percent.

The system is also characterized by its simplified structural design with fewer components, leading to significantly easier operation and maintenance compared to conventional steam-cycle plants.