The study
To calculate the impact of EDVs on air emission levels between today and 2050, the researchers analyzed 108 different scenarios based on powerful energy systems model.
Findings of various models revealed slight or no reduction of the emission of high-profile air pollutants like carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide or nitrogen oxides despite an increase in EDV use by 42 percent.
"We found that increasing the use of EDVs is not an effective way to produce large emissions reductions," study’s senior author, Joseph DeCarolis, assistant professor at North Carolina State University, noted.
Reasons for fall-out
Battery electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids, and hybrid cars are collectively known as the EDVs. Rising oil price and air pollution levels lead to the development of such vehicles.
But higher emissions from power plants manufacturing such vehicles has wiped out some of the benefits of EDVs, researchers believe.
Moreover, electric driven passenger vehicles account for a small share (only 20 percent of carbon dioxide emissions)of total emissions.
“It's because some of the benefits of EDVs are wiped out by higher emissions from power plants. Another factor is that passenger vehicles make up a relatively small share of total emissions, limiting the potential impact of EDVs in the first place," said DeCarolis.
“From a policy standpoint, this study tells us that it makes more sense to set emissions reductions goals, rather than promoting specific vehicle technologies with the idea that they'll solve the problem on their own."
The study titled, “How Much Do Electric Drive Vehicles Matter to Future U.S. Emissions?” is reported online in Environmental Science & Technology.
Electric Drive Vehicles will be ineffective in reducing air emission levels, a new study from the North Carolina State University has found.
