A Strategic Sustainability Analysis of Electric Vehicles in EU Today and Towards 2050
Creators
Description
Ambitions within the EU for moving towards sustainable transport include major emission reductions for fossil fuel road vehicles, especially for buses, trucks, and cars. The electric driveline seems to be an attractive solution for such development. This study first applied the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development to compare sustainability effects of today's fossil fuel vehicles with electric vehicles that have batteries or hydrogen fuel cells. The study then addressed a scenario were electric vehicles might be in majority in Europe by 2050. The methodology called Strategic Lifecycle Assessment was first used, were each life cycle phase was assessed for violations against sustainability principles. This indicates where further analysis could be done in order to quantify the magnitude of each violation, and later to create alternative strategies and actions that lead towards sustainability. A Life Cycle Assessment of combustion engine cars, plug-in hybrid cars, battery electric cars and hydrogen fuel cell cars was then conducted to compare and quantify environmental impacts. The authors found major violations of sustainability principles like use of fossil fuels, which contribute to the increase of emission related impacts such as climate change, acidification, eutrophication, ozone depletion, and particulate matters. Other violations were found, such as use of scarce materials for batteries and fuel cells, and also for most life cycle phases for all vehicles when using fossil fuel vehicles for mining, production and transport. Still, the studied current battery and hydrogen fuel cell cars have less severe violations than fossil fuel cars. The life cycle assessment revealed that fossil fuel cars have overall considerably higher environmental impacts compared to electric cars as long as the latter are powered by renewable electricity. By 2050, there will likely be even more sustainable alternatives than the studied electric vehicles when the EU electricity mix mainly should stem from renewable sources, batteries should be recycled, fuel cells should be a mature technology for use in vehicles (containing no scarce materials), and electric drivelines should have replaced combustion engines in other sectors. An uncertainty for fuel cells in 2050 is whether the production of hydrogen will have had time to switch to renewable resources. If so, that would contribute even more to a sustainable development. Except for being adopted in the GreenCharge roadmap, the authors suggest that the results can contribute to planning in the upcoming decades for a sustainable increase of EVs in Europe, and potentially serve as an inspiration for other smaller or larger regions. Further studies could map the environmental effects in LCA further, and include other road vehicles to get a more precise perception of how much they could affect sustainable development.
Files
10003726.pdf
Files
(501.1 kB)
Name | Size | Download all |
---|---|---|
md5:42767e574999e75229d2e0e1e6d09487
|
501.1 kB | Preview Download |
Additional details
References
- ETSC, "Social and Economic Consequences of Road Traffic Injury in Europe," European Transport Safety Council, 2007.
- L. Ryen and S. Olofsson, "Samhällets kostnader för vägolyckor," Myndigheten för Samhällsskydd och Beredskap, MSB 0048-09, 2009.
- OECD, D. Roy, S. Baird, J. Calder, and N. A. Braathen, The Cost of Air Pollution. OECD Publishing, 2014.
- L. Nurhadi, S. Borén, and H. Ny, "Advancing from Efficiency to Sustainability in Swedish Medium-sized Cities: An Approach for Recommending Powertrains and Energy Carriers for Public Bus Transport Systems," presented at the Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2014, vol. 111, no. 0, pp. 586–595.
- The European Commission, "2030 Framework for Climate & Energy," presented at the European Council October, 2014.
- Greenpeace, "the advanced energy [r]evolution," Greenpeace, Nov. 2011.
- The European Commission, "Roadmap to a Single European Transport Area," European Commission, Brussels, Mar. 2011.
- T. B. Johansson, P. Kågesson, H. Johansson, L. Jonsson, J. Westin, H. Hejenstedt, O. Hådell, K. Holmgren, and P. Wollin, "Fossilfrihet på väg," Fritzes Offentliga Publikationer, Stockholm, SOU 2013:84, Dec. 2013.
- G. J. Offer, D. Howey, M. Contestabile, R. Clague, and N. P. Brandon, "Comparative analysis of battery electric, hydrogen fuel cell and hybrid vehicles in a future sustainable road transport system," Energy Policy, vol. 38, no. 1, pp. 24–29, Jan. 2010. [10] A. Reis, "The role of Battery Electric Vehicles, Plug-in Hybrids and Fuel Cell Electriv Vehicles ," European Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking, NOW GmbH, 2010. [11] I. Bartolozzi, F. Rizzi, and M. Frey, "Comparison between hydrogen and electric vehicles by life cycle assessment: A case study in Tuscany, Italy," Applied Energy, vol. 101, no. 0, pp. 103–111, Jan. 2013. [12] M. Messagie, F.-S. Boureima, T. Coosemans, C. Macharis, and J. Mierlo, "A Range-Based Vehicle Life Cycle Assessment Incorporating Variability in the Environmental Assessment of Different Vehicle Technologies and Fuels," Energies, vol. 7, no. 3, pp. 1467–1482, Mar. 2014. [13] P. Girardi, A. Gargiulo, and P. C. Brambilla, "A comparative LCA of an electric vehicle and an internal combustion engine vehicle using the appropriate power mix: the Italian case study," Int J Life Cycle Assess, vol. 20, no. 8, pp. 1127–1142, May 2015. [14] L. Nurhadi, S. Borén, H. Ny, and T. Larsson, "Competitiveness and sustainability effects of cars and their business models," Journal of Cleaner Production, no. Systematic Leadership towards Sustainability. Karlskrona. Submitted for Publication. [15] K.-H. Robèrt, "Tools and concepts for sustainable development, how do they relate to a general framework for sustainable development, and to each other?," Journal of Cleaner Production, vol. 8, no. 3, pp. 243–254, Jun. 2000. [16] G. Cars, J. Oldmark, and K.-H. Robèrt, "Idépromemoria kring framtidens transportlösningar," Vinnova, Det Naturliga Steget, Stockholm, 2008-00316, Sep. 2008. [17] S. Alvemo, S. Borén, and Q. Gu, "The SEAT approach to Strategic Guidance for Planning towards Sustainable Transportation," Blekinge Institute of Technology, Karlskrona, 2010. [18] S. Borén, "Development of sustainable transport in South East Baltic 'Food for thoughts to achieve green transport in Blekinge 2030'," Region Blekinge, Karlskrona, Nov. 2011. [19] M. Missimer, "Social Sustainability within the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development," Blekinge Tekniska Högskola, Karlskrona, 2015. [20] The European Commission, Energy Roadmap 2050, no. Final. Brussels: European Commission, 2011. [21] D. Gunnarsson, "A Sustainable Approach for Lifecycle Assessment of a Roller at Dynapac," Blekinge Institute of Technology, Karlskrona, 2010. [22] H. Ny, J. P. MacDonald, G. Broman, R. Yamamoto, and K.-H. Robèrt, "Sustainability Constraints as System Boundaries: An Approach to Making Life-Cycle Management Strategic," Journal of Industrial Ecology, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 61–77, Jan. 2006. [23] ISO, "ISO 14040:2006," iso.org, 2006. (Online). Available: http://www.iso.org/iso/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=37456. [Accessed: 02-Dec-2013]. [24] Miljögiraff, "Miljögiraff," miljogiraff.se, 2014. (Online). Available: http://www.miljogiraff.se/giraffen/?lang=en. (Accessed: 15-Oct-2015). [25] Autonet, "Toyota Prius." Miljofordon.se, 2015. [26] Autonet, "Volkswagen Golf GTE." Miljofordon.se, 2015. [27] The European Commission, Directive 2013/28. Bussels: EUR-Lex, 2013. [28] M. Goedkoop, R. Heijungs, M. Huijbregts, A. De Schryver, J. Struijs, and R. van Zelm, "ReCiPe 2008," Ministerie van VROM, the Netherlands, Den Haag, 2013. [29] T. R. Hawkins, T. R. Hawkins, B. Singh, B. Singh, G. Majeau-Bettez, G. Majeau-Bettez, A. H. Strømman, and A. H. Strømman, "Comparative Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Conventional and Electric Vehicles," Journal of Industrial Ecology, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 53–64, Oct. 2012. [30] O. Tsydenova and M. Bengtsson, "Chemical hazards associated with treatment of waste electrical and electronic equipment," Waste Management, vol. 31, no. 1, pp. 45–58, 2011. [31] IEA, "World Energy Outlook," OECD/IEA, Nov. 2012.
- ETSC, "Social and Economic Consequences of Road Traffic Injury in Europe," European Transport Safety Council, 2007.
- L. Ryen and S. Olofsson, "Samhällets kostnader för vägolyckor," Myndigheten för Samhällsskydd och Beredskap, MSB 0048-09, 2009.
- OECD, D. Roy, S. Baird, J. Calder, and N. A. Braathen, The Cost of Air Pollution. OECD Publishing, 2014.
- L. Nurhadi, S. Borén, and H. Ny, "Advancing from Efficiency to Sustainability in Swedish Medium-sized Cities: An Approach for Recommending Powertrains and Energy Carriers for Public Bus Transport Systems," presented at the Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2014, vol. 111, no. 0, pp. 586–595.
- The European Commission, "2030 Framework for Climate & Energy," presented at the European Council October, 2014.
- Greenpeace, "the advanced energy [r]evolution," Greenpeace, Nov. 2011.
- The European Commission, "Roadmap to a Single European Transport Area," European Commission, Brussels, Mar. 2011.
- T. B. Johansson, P. Kågesson, H. Johansson, L. Jonsson, J. Westin, H. Hejenstedt, O. Hådell, K. Holmgren, and P. Wollin, "Fossilfrihet på väg," Fritzes Offentliga Publikationer, Stockholm, SOU 2013:84, Dec. 2013.
- G. J. Offer, D. Howey, M. Contestabile, R. Clague, and N. P. Brandon, "Comparative analysis of battery electric, hydrogen fuel cell and hybrid vehicles in a future sustainable road transport system," Energy Policy, vol. 38, no. 1, pp. 24–29, Jan. 2010. [10] A. Reis, "The role of Battery Electric Vehicles, Plug-in Hybrids and Fuel Cell Electriv Vehicles ," European Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking, NOW GmbH, 2010. [11] I. Bartolozzi, F. Rizzi, and M. Frey, "Comparison between hydrogen and electric vehicles by life cycle assessment: A case study in Tuscany, Italy," Applied Energy, vol. 101, no. 0, pp. 103–111, Jan. 2013. [12] M. Messagie, F.-S. Boureima, T. Coosemans, C. Macharis, and J. Mierlo, "A Range-Based Vehicle Life Cycle Assessment Incorporating Variability in the Environmental Assessment of Different Vehicle Technologies and Fuels," Energies, vol. 7, no. 3, pp. 1467–1482, Mar. 2014. [13] P. Girardi, A. Gargiulo, and P. C. Brambilla, "A comparative LCA of an electric vehicle and an internal combustion engine vehicle using the appropriate power mix: the Italian case study," Int J Life Cycle Assess, vol. 20, no. 8, pp. 1127–1142, May 2015. [14] L. Nurhadi, S. Borén, H. Ny, and T. Larsson, "Competitiveness and sustainability effects of cars and their business models," Journal of Cleaner Production, no. Systematic Leadership towards Sustainability. Karlskrona. Submitted for Publication. [15] K.-H. Robèrt, "Tools and concepts for sustainable development, how do they relate to a general framework for sustainable development, and to each other?," Journal of Cleaner Production, vol. 8, no. 3, pp. 243–254, Jun. 2000. [16] G. Cars, J. Oldmark, and K.-H. Robèrt, "Idépromemoria kring framtidens transportlösningar," Vinnova, Det Naturliga Steget, Stockholm, 2008-00316, Sep. 2008. [17] S. Alvemo, S. Borén, and Q. Gu, "The SEAT approach to Strategic Guidance for Planning towards Sustainable Transportation," Blekinge Institute of Technology, Karlskrona, 2010. [18] S. Borén, "Development of sustainable transport in South East Baltic 'Food for thoughts to achieve green transport in Blekinge 2030'," Region Blekinge, Karlskrona, Nov. 2011. [19] M. Missimer, "Social Sustainability within the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development," Blekinge Tekniska Högskola, Karlskrona, 2015. [20] The European Commission, Energy Roadmap 2050, no. Final. Brussels: European Commission, 2011. [21] D. Gunnarsson, "A Sustainable Approach for Lifecycle Assessment of a Roller at Dynapac," Blekinge Institute of Technology, Karlskrona, 2010. [22] H. Ny, J. P. MacDonald, G. Broman, R. Yamamoto, and K.-H. Robèrt, "Sustainability Constraints as System Boundaries: An Approach to Making Life-Cycle Management Strategic," Journal of Industrial Ecology, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 61–77, Jan. 2006. [23] ISO, "ISO 14040:2006," iso.org, 2006. (Online). Available: http://www.iso.org/iso/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=37456. [Accessed: 02-Dec-2013]. [24] Miljögiraff, "Miljögiraff," miljogiraff.se, 2014. (Online). Available: http://www.miljogiraff.se/giraffen/?lang=en. (Accessed: 15-Oct-2015). [25] Autonet, "Toyota Prius." Miljofordon.se, 2015. [26] Autonet, "Volkswagen Golf GTE." Miljofordon.se, 2015. [27] The European Commission, Directive 2013/28. Bussels: EUR-Lex, 2013. [28] M. Goedkoop, R. Heijungs, M. Huijbregts, A. De Schryver, J. Struijs, and R. van Zelm, "ReCiPe 2008," Ministerie van VROM, the Netherlands, Den Haag, 2013. [29] T. R. Hawkins, T. R. Hawkins, B. Singh, B. Singh, G. Majeau-Bettez, G. Majeau-Bettez, A. H. Strømman, and A. H. Strømman, "Comparative Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Conventional and Electric Vehicles," Journal of Industrial Ecology, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 53–64, Oct. 2012. [30] O. Tsydenova and M. Bengtsson, "Chemical hazards associated with treatment of waste electrical and electronic equipment," Waste Management, vol. 31, no. 1, pp. 45–58, 2011. [31] IEA, "World Energy Outlook," OECD/IEA, Nov. 2012. [32] B. Scrosati and J. Garche, "Lithium batteries: Status, prospects and future," Journal of Power Sources, vol. 195, no. 9, pp. 2419–2430, 2010. [33] W. Tahil, "The Trouble with Lithium," evworld.com, Dec-2006. (Online). Available: http://www.evworld.com/library/lithium_shortage.pdf. (Accessed: 19-Mar-2014). [34] D. Kushnir and B. A. Sandén, "The time dimension and lithium resource constraints for electric vehicles," Resources Policy, vol. 37, no. 1, pp. 93–103, Mar. 2012. [35] A. Elshkaki, "An analysis of future platinum resources, emissions and waste streams using a system dynamic model of its intentional and non-intentional flows and stocks," Resources Policy, vol. 38, no. 3, pp. 241–251, 2013. [36] J. H. M. Harmsen, A. L. Roes, and M. K. Patel, "The impact of copper scarcity on the efficiency of 2050 global renewable energy scenarios," Energy, vol. 50, no. 0, pp. 62–73, Feb. 2013. [37] S. Borén, L. Nurhadi, H. Ny, K.-H. Robèrt, G. Broman, and L. Trygg, "A Strategic Approach to Sustainable transport system development - Part 2: the case of a vision for electric vehicle systems in Southeast Sweden" Journal of Cleaner Production, no. Systematic Leadership towards sustainability. Submitted for Publication. [38] C.-J. Yang, "An impending platinum crisis and its implications for the future of the automobile," Energy Policy, vol. 37, no. 5, pp. 1805–1808, 2009. [39] H. Ma, F. Balthasar, N. Tait, X. Riera-Palou, and A. Harrison, "A new comparison between the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of battery electric vehicles and internal combustion vehicles," Energy Policy, vol. 44, pp. 160–173, May 2012.