Electric Cars:
The project statement:
The global production of cars in 2011 was 60 million per year, growing at 3.3% per year. Cars account for 74% of production of motor vehicles and are responsible for about 20% of all the carbon released into the atmosphere [1]. National governments implement policies to reduce this source of emissions through taxation and incentives. One of the incentives is to subsidise electric vehicles (EVs). From a materials point of view, the major differences between electric and internal combustion (IC) cars are the replacement of the IC engine with electric motors that, at present, use Neodymium-Boron permanent magnets and the replacement of gasoline or diesel fuel by batteries. It is estimated that the global production of electric cars – either hybrids (HV), plug-in hybrids (PHV), or fully electric (EV) – will exceed 16 million per year in 2021 and will account for 20% of all vehicles manufactured [2]. EVs, particularly, are seen as the way to decarbonise road transport. France, Germany and the UK all have target EV sales of around 10% of all car sales by 2020. Is this a realistically achievable sustainable development on a global scale?
Background information:
- Today’s electric cars have 16 kWh batteries and a claimed range of up to 100 km between charges.
- An EV with this range requires about 1.5 kg of Neodymium for the motors [3] and 7.3 kg of lithium, (equating to 0.46 kg Lithium per nominal kWh) for the rechargeable batteries [4].
- The at-wheel energy required to propel a small car is between 0.6 and 1.0 MJ/km (0.17 and 3 kW.hr/km) [5].
- Delivered electric power from a gas-fired power station has a carbon footprint of 500 g/kW.hr, or 140 g/MJ [6]; that from a coal fired power station has larger carbon footprint.
References:
- www.epa.gov/climatechange/ghgemissions/sources.html
- http://imsresearch.com/news-events/press-template.php?pr_id=2135
- www.reuters.com/article/2009/08/31/us-mining-toyota-idUSTRE57U02B20090831
- Tahil, W. (2010) “How Much Lithium does a LiIon EV battery really need? www.meridian-int-res.com and http://www.google.co.uk/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF8&rlz=1T4ADBR_enGB321GB323&q=how+much+lithium+is+in+a+battery
- Telens Peiro, L. Villalba Mendez, G. and Ayres, R.U. (2013) “Lithium: sources, production, uses and recovery outlook” JOM Vol65, pp. 896 – 996.
- See, for example, www.defra.gov.uk/publications/files/pb13773-ghg-conversion-factors-2012.pdf Table 3c
Step 3: Fact finding. To get further we need facts and facts need research (Figure 4). What sort of facts?
- Facts that establish what the implementation is and what materials and energy are required to make it happen. What environmental impact will it have? Is it legal? Are there regulations with which is
- must comply? Is it fair and equitable? What will it cost?
- Facts that relate to the stakeholder concerns. Are the concerns justified? What information is needed to confirm or refute them?
- Facts relating to essential infrastructure. What products or services will have to be in place to support the implementation if it goes ahead?
Step 3 is then to look at each of these questions and answer them by researching them by looking at newspaper articles, the internet and the CES EduPack which we will discuss in class (reference).
