scholarly journals Quest for Sustainability: Life-Cycle Emissions Assessment of Electric Vehicles Considering Newer Li-Ion Batteries

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 2366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arminda Almeida ◽  
Nuno Sousa ◽  
João Coutinho-Rodrigues

The number of battery electric vehicle models available in the market has been increasing, as well as their battery capacity, and these trends are likely to continue in the future as sustainable transportation goals rise in importance, supported by advances in battery chemistry and technology. Given the rapid pace of these advances, the impact of new chemistries, e.g., lithium-manganese rich cathode materials and silicon/graphite anodes, has not yet been thoroughly considered in the literature. This research estimates life cycle greenhouse gas and other air pollutants emissions of battery electric vehicles with different battery chemistries, including the above advances. The analysis methodology, which uses the greenhouse gases, regulated emissions, and energy use in transportation (GREET) life-cycle assessment model, considers 8 battery types, 13 electricity generation mixes with different predominant primary energy sources, and 4 vehicle segments (small, medium, large, and sport utility vehicles), represented by prototype vehicles, with both battery replacement and non-replacement during the life cycle. Outputs are expressed as emissions ratios to the equivalent petrol internal combustion engine vehicle and two-way analysis of variance is used to test results for statistical significance. Results show that newer Li-ion battery technology can yield significant improvements over older battery chemistries, which can be as high as 60% emissions reduction, depending on pollutant type and electricity generation mix.

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 2864 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Temporelli ◽  
Maria Leonor Carvalho ◽  
Pierpaolo Girardi

In electric and hybrid vehicles Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs), batteries play a central role and are in the spotlight of scientific community and public opinion. Automotive batteries constitute, together with the powertrain, the main differences between electric vehicles and internal combustion engine vehicles. For this reason, many decision makers and researchers wondered whether energy and environmental impacts from batteries production, can exceed the benefits generated during the vehicle’s use phase. In this framework, the purpose of the present literature review is to understand how large and variable the main impacts are due to automotive batteries’ life cycle, with particular attention to climate change impacts, and to support researchers with some methodological suggestions in the field of automotive batteries’ LCA. The results show that there is high variability in environmental impact assessment; CO2eq emissions per kWh of battery capacity range from 50 to 313 g CO2eq/kWh. Nevertheless, either using the lower or upper bounds of this range, electric vehicles result less carbon-intensive in their life cycle than corresponding diesel or petrol vehicles.


2019 ◽  
Vol 118 ◽  
pp. 02010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ningning Ha

In China, the growth of new energy vehicles is especially rapid and the explosive growth of the automobile brought an increasing impact on the environment. This paper selected Electric Vehicles, Hybrid Vehicles and Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles of the same model of BYD as the object. We established a Life Cycle Assessment with GaBi6 software and CML2001 model. The results show that in the whole life cycle, the influences of ADP, GWP and ODP of Electric Vehicles are less than that of Hybrid Vehicles and Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles. The impact of Electric Vehicles are 39%, 50%, and 4% of the Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles and the Hybrid Vehicles’ impact are 65%, 78% and 85% of the Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles. Electric Vehicles and Hybrid Vehicles have a clear improvement in these three types of impacts. The comparison results of AP, EP, FAETP, MAETP and POCP show that the potential impact of Electric Vehicles is greater than that of Hybrid Vehicles and Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles. At present, improving production technology and reducing the consumption of energy during production phase are effective measures to reduce the environmental impact of Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles and Hybrid Vehicles of China.


Author(s):  
M. von der Thannen ◽  
S. Hoerbinger ◽  
C. Muellebner ◽  
H. Biber ◽  
H. P. Rauch

AbstractRecently, applications of soil and water bioengineering constructions using living plants and supplementary materials have become increasingly popular. Besides technical effects, soil and water bioengineering has the advantage of additionally taking into consideration ecological values and the values of landscape aesthetics. When implementing soil and water bioengineering structures, suitable plants must be selected, and the structures must be given a dimension taking into account potential impact loads. A consideration of energy flows and the potential negative impact of construction in terms of energy and greenhouse gas balance has been neglected until now. The current study closes this gap of knowledge by introducing a method for detecting the possible negative effects of installing soil and water bioengineering measures. For this purpose, an environmental life cycle assessment model has been applied. The impact categories global warming potential and cumulative energy demand are used in this paper to describe the type of impacts which a bioengineering construction site causes. Additionally, the water bioengineering measure is contrasted with a conventional civil engineering structure. The results determine that the bioengineering alternative performs slightly better, in terms of energy demand and global warming potential, than the conventional measure. The most relevant factor is shown to be the impact of the running machines at the water bioengineering construction site. Finally, an integral ecological assessment model for applications of soil and water bioengineering structures should point out the potential negative effects caused during installation and, furthermore, integrate the assessment of potential positive effects due to the development of living plants in the use stage of the structures.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 5726
Author(s):  
Aleksandra Wewer ◽  
Pinar Bilge ◽  
Franz Dietrich

Electromobility is a new approach to the reduction of CO2 emissions and the deceleration of global warming. Its environmental impacts are often compared to traditional mobility solutions based on gasoline or diesel engines. The comparison pertains mostly to the single life cycle of a battery. The impact of multiple life cycles remains an important, and yet unanswered, question. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate advances of 2nd life applications for lithium ion batteries from electric vehicles based on their energy demand. Therefore, it highlights the limitations of a conventional life cycle analysis (LCA) and presents a supplementary method of analysis by providing the design and results of a meta study on the environmental impact of lithium ion batteries. The study focuses on energy demand, and investigates its total impact for different cases considering 2nd life applications such as (C1) material recycling, (C2) repurposing and (C3) reuse. Required reprocessing methods such as remanufacturing of batteries lie at the basis of these 2nd life applications. Batteries are used in their 2nd lives for stationary energy storage (C2, repurpose) and electric vehicles (C3, reuse). The study results confirm that both of these 2nd life applications require less energy than the recycling of batteries at the end of their first life and the production of new batteries. The paper concludes by identifying future research areas in order to generate precise forecasts for 2nd life applications and their industrial dissemination.


Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 1046
Author(s):  
Maksymilian Mądziel ◽  
Tiziana Campisi ◽  
Artur Jaworski ◽  
Giovanni Tesoriere

Urban agglomerations close to road infrastructure are particularly exposed to harmful exhaust emissions from motor vehicles and this problem is exacerbated at road intersections. Roundabouts are one of the most popular intersection designs in recent years, making traffic flow smoother and safer, but especially at peak times they are subject to numerous stop-and-go operations by vehicles, which increase the dispersion of emissions with high particulate matter rates. The study focused on a specific area of the city of Rzeszow in Poland. This country is characterized by the current composition of vehicle fleets connected to combustion engine vehicles. The measurement of the concentration of particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) by means of a preliminary survey campaign in the vicinity of the intersection made it possible to assess the impact of vehicle traffic on the dispersion of pollutants in the air. The present report presents some strategies to be implemented in the examined area considering a comparison of current and project scenarios characterized both by a modification of the road geometry (through the introduction of a turbo roundabout) and the composition of the vehicular flow with the forthcoming diffusion of electric vehicles. The study presents an exemplified methodology for comparing scenarios aimed at optimizing strategic choices for the local administration and also shows the benefits of an increased electric fleet. By processing the data with specific tools and comparing the scenarios, it was found that a conversion of 25% of the motor vehicles to electric vehicles in the current fleet has reduced the concentration of PM10 by about 30% along the ring road, has led to a significant reduction in the length of particulate concentration of the motorway, and it has also led to a significant reduction in the length of the particulate concentration for the access roads to the intersection.


2018 ◽  
Vol 203 ◽  
pp. 444-468 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lidiane La Picirelli de Souza ◽  
Electo Eduardo Silva Lora ◽  
José Carlos Escobar Palacio ◽  
Mateus Henrique Rocha ◽  
Maria Luiza Grillo Renó ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Daniele Landi ◽  
Paolo Cicconi ◽  
Michele Germani

An important issue in the mechanical industry is the reduction of the time to market, in order to meet quickly the customer needs. This goal is very important for SMEs that produce small lots of customized products. In the context of greenhouse gas emissions reduction, vehicles powered by electric motors seem to be the most suitable alternative to the traditional internal combustion engine vehicles. The market of customized electric vehicles is a niche market suitable for SMEs. Nowadays, the energy storage system of an electric vehicle powertrain consists of several Li-ion cells arranged in a container called battery pack. Particularly, the battery unit is considered as the most critical component in electric vehicle, because it impacts on performance and life cycle cost. Currently, the design of a battery pack mostly depends on the related market size. A longer design time is expected in the case of a large scale production. While a small customized production requires more agility and velocity in the design process. The proposed research focuses on a design methodology to support the designer in the evaluation of the battery thermal behavior. This work has been applied in the context of a customized small production. As test case, an urban electric light commercial vehicle has been analyzed. The designed battery layout has been evaluated and simulated using virtual prototyping tools. A cooling configuration has been analyzed and then prototyped in a physical vehicle. The virtual thermal behavior of a Li-ion battery has been validated at the test bench. The real operational conditions have been analyzed reproducing several ECE-15 driving cycles and many acceleration runs at different load values. Thermocouples have measured the temperature values during the physical experiments, in order to validate the analytical thermal profile evaluated with the proposed design approach.


Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (19) ◽  
pp. 3612 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanmei Li ◽  
Ningning Ha ◽  
Tingting Li

To study the impact of the promotion of electric vehicles on carbon emissions in China, the full life carbon emissions of electric vehicles are studied on the basis of considering such factors as vehicle weight and grid mix composition, and fuel vehicles are added for comparison. In this paper, we collect data for 34 domestic electric vehicles, and linear regression analysis is used to model the relationship between vehicle weight and energy consumption. Then, a Hybrid Life Cycle Assessment method is used to establish the life cycle carbon emission calculation model for electric vehicles and fuel vehicles. Finally, the life cycle carbon emissions of electric vehicles and fuel vehicles under different electrical energy structures are discussed using scenario analysis. The results show that under the current grid mix composition in China, the carbon emissions of electric vehicles of the same vehicle weight class are 24% to 31% higher than that of fuel vehicles. As the proportion of clean energy in the grid mix composition increases, the advantages of electric vehicles to reduce carbon emissions will gradually emerge.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huijun Liu ◽  
Fenfang Chen ◽  
Yuxiang Tong ◽  
Zihang Wang ◽  
Xiaoli Yu ◽  
...  

The aging of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) is a crucial issue and must be investigated. The aging rate of LIBs depends not only on the material and electrochemical performance but also on the working conditions. In order to assess the impact of vehicle driving conditions, including the driving cycle, ambient temperature, charging mode, and trip distance on the battery life cycle, this paper first establishes an electric vehicle (EV) energy flow model to solve the operating parameters of the battery pack while working. Then, a powertrain test is carried out to verify the simulation model. Based on the simulated data under different conditions, the battery capacity fade process is estimated by using a semi-empirical aging model. The mileage (Ф) traveled by the vehicle before the end of life (EOL) of the battery pack is then calculated and taken as the evaluation index. The results indicate that the Ф is higher when the vehicle drives the Japanese chassis dynamometer test cycle JC08 than in the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) and the Federal Test Procedure (FTP-75). The Ф will be dramatically reduced at both low and high ambient temperatures. Fast charging can increase the Ф at low ambient temperatures, whereas long trip driving can always increase Ф to varying degrees.


Environments ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simona Jursova ◽  
Dorota Burchart-Korol ◽  
Pavlina Pustejovska

In the light of recent developments regarding electric vehicle market share, we assess the carbon footprint and water footprint of electric vehicles and provide a comparative analysis of energy use from the grid to charge electric vehicle batteries in the Czech Republic. The analysis builds on the electricity generation forecast for the Czech Republic for 2015–2050. The impact of different sources of electricity supply on carbon and water footprints were analyzed based on electricity generation by source for the period. Within the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), the carbon footprint was calculated using the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) method, while the water footprint was determined by the Water Scarcity method. The computational LCA model was provided by the SimaPro v. 8.5 package with the Ecoinvent v. 3 database. The functional unit of study was running an electric vehicle over 100 km. The system boundary covered an electric vehicle life cycle from cradle to grave. For the analysis, we chose a vehicle powered by a lithium-ion battery with assumed consumption 19.9 kWh/100 km. The results show that electricity generated to charge electric vehicle batteries is the main determinant of carbon and water footprints related to electric vehicles in the Czech Republic. Another important factor is passenger car production. Nuclear power is the main determinant of the water footprint for the current and future electric vehicle charging, while, currently, lignite and hard coal are the main determinants of carbon footprint.


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