Life cycle assessment department of environmental affairs. Figure 1 shows the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of electric and conventional vehicles, detailing the contributions of lithiumion battery manufacturing, vehicle. Life cycle analysis of the climate impact of electric vehicles. Electric vehicle life cycle analysis and raw material availability pdf.
Life cycle assessment lca is a method to analyze the total impacts of a good or service. Hawkins, bhawna singh, guillaume majeaubettez, and anders hammer stromman keywords. Moreover, the nissan leaf manufacturer states that the battery pack is designed to last the life of the car. Genikomsakis 1 1 european research area chair holder netzero energy e ciency on city districts, nzed unit. Driving an electric vehicle and a conventional gasoline vehicle gv also carries an environmental burden. An example of why lifecycle assessment is essential is the case of an automobile using a new fuel that permits the automobile to consume less fuel and emit less co2 per kilometer traveled while on the road. This study presents the life cycle assessment of an electric car based on the technology of lithiumion battery bev for europe and compares it to an internal combustion engine vehicle icev. This analysis is often termed cradletograve as it includes the extraction of raw materials used to make a product all the way to the disposal or recycling of the product at the end of its useful life. Lifecycle implications and supply chain logistics of electric vehicle battery recycling in california to cite this article. This analysis is often termed cradletograve as it includes the extraction of raw materials used to make a product all the way to the disposal or. Pdf life cycle assessment of conventional and electric. Lifecycle assessment of electric vehicles in the united states k. Term 2018 a focus on electric vehicles from life cycle assessment and circular economy perspectives electric vehicles are anticipated to be a key future component of europes mobility system, helping reduce impacts on climate change and air quality. Electric car life cycle assessment based on realworld mileage and the electric conversion scenario.
The life cycle assessment lca method is used for the quantitative ecological assessment. Battery electric vehicles plugin hybrid electric vehicles lifecycle assessment greenhouse gas emissions welltowheel balances total costs of ownership a b s t r a c t this paper presents an. Supplementary information environmental life cycle. The lifecycle environmental impacts of electric cars are a topic of increasing. Analysis of the electric vehicle industry primary authors jennifer todd is an economic development associate at iedc. The adac life cycle assessment calculations also prove that vehicles with combustion engines still have great potential. A small gingerbread house is used instead of a reallife building for the sake of simplicity, and also to focus. Electric mobility is playing an important and growing role in the context of sustainable transport sector development. While almost all life cycle assessment lca studies published so far are based on generic vehicles, type approval energy consumption as well as emission data, and application scenarios related to standardized laboratorybased driving cycles, this projects aims at quantifying the lca based on a realworld vehicle composition and energy consumption data measured before and after the electric. Vehicle emissions and life cycle analysis models of. Lifecycle assessment of electric vehicles in the united. Electric vehicle global warming pollution ratings and gasoline vehicle emissions equivalents by electricity grid region 3 figure es2. Contribution of liion batteries to the environmental. Environmental life cycle assessment of electric vehicles in poland and the czech republic.
As detailed in a recent series of investiga tive reports by the washington post, much of the cobalt and graphite entering the supply chain for lithiumion batteries is sourced from poorly regulated and heavily polluting mines in congo 1. Cleaner cars from cradle to grave union of concerned scientists. It does not include the use phase of the batteries. Oct 12, 2017 electric cars can become more ecofriendly through life cycle assessment date. It is not intended for and should not be relied upon by any third party and no responsibility is undertaken to any third party. Sensitivity analysis in the lifecycle assessment of electric. Life cycle analysis of electric vehicles ubc sustainability.
The life cycle energy consumption and greenhouse gas. Life cycle assessment of electric vehicles final report 243900 final 10 november 2015 this report takes into account the particular instructions and requirements of our client. Daimler ag presents results from a comparative study of a hybrid and a conventional version of the same car from a full lca perspective. This briefing addresses two of the criticisms against electric vehicles ev, their environmental impact on a lifecycle basis. Cleaner cars from cradle to grave union of concerned. Electric vehicles from life cycle and circular economy. Accordingly, this paper adopts a life cycle analysis approach to synthesize and explore the development and structure of some of the most common emissions models. The methodology used for a lifecycle assessment lca can greatly influence. Gasoline vs electricwho wins on lifetime global warming. Electric vehicles from life cycle and circular economy perspectives. Vehicle emissions and life cycle analysis models of gasoline and electric vehicles.
Related content environmental assessment of passenger transportation should include infrastructure. Internal combustion engine vehicles 3 impact of car ownership. Life cycle assessment of electric vehicles concawe. Electric vehicle life cycle analysis and raw material availability this study and briefing address two critical aspects of this debate, namely the climate impact of evs. Life cycle analysis of electric vehicles balpreet kukreja. Life cycle assessment of electric vehicles a framework to. Comparative environmental life cycle assessment of conventional and electric vehicles. Electric cars can become more ecofriendly through life. Dec 23, 2014 the car is the renault fluence ze, the electric conversion of a french compact sedan not sold in north america. Unlike common practice, we derive the cradletograve inventories from an originally combustion engine vw caddy that was. Cleaner cars from cradle to grave v figures, tables, and boxes figures 2 figure es1. Each of these distributions is linked to past data for that particular make.
May 23, 2015 the purpose of the study is to compare the performances of two passenger cars. Title and subtitle lithiumion battery safety issues for electric and plugin hybrid vehicles 5. The following sections describe the life cycle inventories of electric bicycles and scooters. Research confirms environmental benefits of electric vehicles. A 2012 study published in the journal of industrial ecology, comparative environmental life cycle assessment of conventional and electric vehicles, analyzes how electric cars stack up against those with traditional gas and diesel engines over their entire life cycles in a european context. Demand is centred on replacements for what people already own. In particular a city car was taken into account, because it presents several innovations for saving weight, in order to obtain more operating ranges. We seek to answer this question and compare the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of electric and conventional passenger cars in europe.
Comparative environmental life cycle assessment of. Pdf life cycle assessment of conventional and electric vehicles. Electric vehicle life cycle analysis and raw material availability this study and briefing address two critical aspects of this debate, namely the climate impact of evs and the use of critical metals, including rare earth minerals. Term 2018 a focus on electric vehicles from life cycle assessment and circular. In the same year private car journeys made up 79% of trips nationally and 71% of trips in the capital city wellington mot, 2016b. Electric vehicle life cycle analysis and raw material availability october 2017 summary as the automotive industry is on the brink of a major electric transition, environmental performance of evs has become a highly debated topic. Most existing lifecycle assessments on bevs imply no battery replacement.
Proper lifecycle analyses of electric cars are hard to do, and expensive. The mature phase of the industry life cycle is one in which the opportunities for product innovation are low. Life cycle assessment pdf is now three years old, but it remains an excellent model for looking at gasoline versus electric propulsion. The purpose of the study is to compare the performances of two passenger cars. Lifecycle assessment of electric vehicles in the united states. Supplementary information environmental life cycle assessment.
Using the polish average, an electric vehicle emits. The car is the renault fluence ze, the electric conversion of a french compact sedan not sold in north america. Administration commissioned study on the life cycle energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from lithiumion batteries. Life cycle implications and supply chain logistics of electric vehicle battery recycling in california to cite this article. This report considers the life cycle performance of conventional and electric vehicles in europe. Life cycle assessment of future electric and hybrid. Life cycle global warming emissions from the manufacturing and operation of gasoline and batteryelectric vehicles 9 figure.
Comparative environmental life cycle assessment of conventional. The international journal of life cycle assessment 2017, 22 1, 1530. Electric cars can become more ecofriendly through life cycle. Research methods, data and results figure 1 system boundary for the life cycle assessment. Lifecycle analysis comparison of a battery electric vehicle. Electric vehicle life cycle analysis and raw material. F7 endoflife is clarified to occur when either the net dst delivered capacity or peak power capability at 80% dod is less than 80% of rated. Electric cars can become more ecofriendly through life cycle assessment date.
Life cycle environmental assessment of lithiumion and nickel metal hydride batteries for plugin hybrid and battery electric vehicles. Jess chen is a research fellow and a phd candidate at american university. Jul 31, 2015 while almost all life cycle assessment lca studies published so far are based on generic vehicles, type approval energy consumption as well as emission data, and application scenarios related to standardized laboratorybased driving cycles, this projects aims at quantifying the lca based on a realworld vehicle composition and energy consumption data measured before and after the electric. Life cycle assessment of a lithium iron phosphate lfp. We focus on the global warming impacts of todays evs and expect it to get better as we clean up the grid with policies like the clean power plan and increasing our use of renewable. Life cycle assessment lca is the calculation and evaluation of the environmentally relevant inputs and outputs and the potential environmental impacts of the life cycle of a product, material or service sabs iso, 1998. A practice guide referred to as the practice guide in this document. Pdf life cycle assessment of future electric and hybrid. Electric car lifecycle analysis electric vehicle news by. This study employs the cradletograve approach of life cycle analysis to assess environmental.
Electric vehicle life cycle analysis and raw material availability october 2017 summary as the automotive industry is on the brink of a major electric transition, environmental. For conventional icevs, although the use phase accounts for the majority of global warming potential gwp impact, vehicle production is not insignificant, contributing on the order of 10% to the life cycle gwp. Oct 09, 2014 a 2012 study published in the journal of industrial ecology, comparative environmental life cycle assessment of conventional and electric vehicles, analyzes how electric cars stack up against those with traditional gas and diesel engines over their entire life cycles in a european context. Life cycle assessment of two wheel vehicles implemented in ecoinvent data v2. Contribution of liion batteries to the environmental impact. Frankie clogston is an iedc consultant and a phd candidate at johns hopkins university. Life cycle assessment of battery electric vehicles and. Singh the submitted manuscnpt has been authored by a contractor of the u.
Conducting an life cycle assessment lca to determine the environmental impact of electric passenger cars is not straightforward. A simple example introduction page 3 introduction this document presents a simple example of the steps in life cycle assessment of buildings. This study presents the life cycle assessment of an electric car based on the technology of 15 lithiumion battery bev for europe and compares it to an internal combustion engine vehicle icev. An application of life cycle analysis on the electric car. Electric car lifecycle analysis electric vehicle news.
More specifically, the evaluation places a high value on studies where detailed processspecific data are presented. Effects of battery manufacturing on electric vehicle life. Oct 29, 2015 but what are the global warming emissions of electric cars on a life cycle basisfrom the manufacturing of the vehicles body and battery to its ultimate disposal and reuse. Uster, june 2010 report life cycle assessment of battery electric vehicles and concept cars implemented in ecoinvent data v2. Battery electric vehicles plugin hybrid electric vehicles life cycle assessment greenhouse gas emissions welltowheel balances total costs of ownership a b s t r a c t this paper presents an. Lifecycle of the car industry openlearn open university. A life cycle assessment approach was used to estimate the environmental impacts of a greater uptake of ebikes that would displace the use of family size cars powered by petrol or diesel engines. Even if many similar comparative life cycle assessments lcas exist nordelof et al.
Effects of battery manufacturing on electric vehicle lifecycle. Comparative environmental life cycle assessment of conventional and electric vehicles troy r. Research confirms environmental benefits of electric vehicles 24 november 2015 a life cycle analysis report commissioned by the energy efficiency and conservation authority eeca has found that electric vehicles evs are better for the new zealand environment than petrol or diesel powered vehicles, across the lifecycle of the vehicle as well. Life cycle assessment lca is a methodology, commonly used for the environmental assessment of vehicle technologies or any other productsystem. Vehicle emissions and life cycle analysis models of gasoline. For the last 50 years, the car industry has been in the mature phase of its lifecycle. Lithiumion battery safety issues for electric and plugin hybrid vehicles report no. Sensitivity analysis in the lifecycle assessment of. Therefore, it is essential to compare the environmental life cycle assessment lca of both evs and gvs in the road transportation sector. But what are the global warming emissions of electric cars on a life cycle basisfrom the manufacturing of the vehicles body and battery to its ultimate disposal and reuse. Lifecycle analysis comparison of a battery electric. Lifecycle implications and supply chain logistics of.
Contribution of body lightweight design to the environmental impact of electric vehicles. An application of life cycle analysis on the electric car 971179 in this work an lca approach has been applied on an electric car prototype. Assessment of potential lithiumion battery safety issues. Electric vehicle life cycle analysis and raw material availability october 2017. Lca studies consider, all the environmentally significant. The life cycle assessment we present in this report is a common way to compare electric vehicles and gasoline cars with the most recent data available. This study uses life cycle analysis lca to comparatively analyze two vehicle models of similar size of. Pdf life cycle assessment of electric vehicles a framework to. Life cycle global warming emissions from the manufacturing and operation of gasoline and battery electric vehicles 9 figure. This is likely the most complete life cycle inventory lci of an ev. This study compares the environmental impacts of petrol, diesel, natural gas, and electric vehicles using a processbased attributional life cycle assessment lca and the recipe characterization method that captures 18 impact categories and the single score endpoints. Life cycle assessment of electric vehicles a framework. Internal combustion engine vehicles 1 a united statesbased comprehensive assessment battery electric vehicles bevs do not consume gasoline or produce tailpipe carbon emissions, placing the promise of an environmentally sustainable driving experience within reach of the average consumer.