Electric vehicles/Fossil fuel powered: Difference between revisions
(Added more detail, but didn't account for the differences of GHG of each fuel yet.) |
(Accounted for the different GHG of different fuels. I still plan to refactor the calculations so the steps are less awkward.) |
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Line 5: | Line 5: | ||
'''Yes.''' | '''Yes.''' | ||
The carbon emissions are ''' | The carbon emissions are '''about the same''' as gas cars, if the electricity is generated by | ||
* coal power plants | * coal power plants | ||
* ''simple'' natural gas power plants | * ''simple'' natural gas power plants | ||
For ''advanced'' natural gas power plants, which are more efficient, best-case carbon emissions are | For ''advanced'' natural gas power plants, which are more efficient, best-case carbon emissions are about '''half''' of what they'd be from driving a gas car. | ||
==Long answer== | ==Long answer== | ||
Line 102: | Line 102: | ||
What is the environmental impact of lithium batteries? - Changeit ...</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | What is the environmental impact of lithium batteries? - Changeit ...</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | ||
changeit.app › blog › 2021-03-26-environmental-impact-of-lithium-batteries </nowiki> | changeit.app › blog › 2021-03-26-environmental-impact-of-lithium-batteries </nowiki> | ||
}} | |||
{{dp | |||
|<nowiki>coal.ghg_by_energy</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>95.35 kg / million btu</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>CO2 emissions of burning coal</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>https://www.eia.gov/environment/emissions/co2_vol_mass.php</nowiki> | |||
}} | }} | ||
{{dp | {{dp | ||
Line 108: | Line 114: | ||
|<nowiki>CO2 emissions of burning gasoline</nowiki> | |<nowiki>CO2 emissions of burning gasoline</nowiki> | ||
|<nowiki>https://www.eia.gov/environment/emissions/co2_vol_mass.php</nowiki> | |<nowiki>https://www.eia.gov/environment/emissions/co2_vol_mass.php</nowiki> | ||
}} | |||
{{dp | |||
|<nowiki>usa.natural_gas.fugitive_ghg</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>176.1 million tonnes / year</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>Greenhouse gas CO2eq of fugitive methane leaks from all natural gas infrastructure in the USA</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | |||
Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2014</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | |||
https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/inventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks-1990-2014</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | |||
2016 Complete Report (PDF)</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | |||
Using data from 2014</nowiki> | |||
}} | |||
{{dp | |||
|<nowiki>usa.natural_gas.energy</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>27.9 quadrillion btu / year</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>U.S. energy consumption from natural gas combustion only</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | |||
Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2014</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | |||
https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/inventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks-1990-2014</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | |||
2016 Complete Report (PDF)</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | |||
Datapoint was found on page 115, from pie chart and line graph, using data from 2014</nowiki> | |||
}} | |||
{{dp | |||
|<nowiki>natural_gas.fugitive_ghg_by_energy</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>usa.natural_gas.fugitive_ghg / usa.natural_gas.energy</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>Fugitive emissions (CO2eq) of natural gas, per unit energy</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>Average based on US datapoints.</nowiki> | |||
}} | |||
{{dp | |||
|<nowiki>natural_gas.ghg_by_energy</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>53.07 kg / million btu</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>CO2 emissions of burning natural gas</nowiki> | |||
|<nowiki>Does not include the fugitive methane emissions from unburned fuel. Those vary by how the gas is burned.</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | |||
</nowiki><br /><nowiki> | |||
https://www.eia.gov/environment/emissions/co2_vol_mass.php</nowiki> | |||
}} | }} | ||
{{dp | {{dp | ||
Line 148: | Line 188: | ||
''Now compare for the gasoline a non-electric car would burn, on average:'' | ''Now compare for the gasoline a non-electric car would burn, on average:'' | ||
{{calc | {{calc | ||
|average_us_vehicle.mileage_by_time | |gasoline.ghg_by_energy * average_us_vehicle.mileage_by_time / car.fuel_economy | ||
|tonnes / year | |tonnes / year | ||
|gasoline_ghg | |gasoline_ghg | ||
Line 155: | Line 195: | ||
''Now, for coal power plants charging EVs, same amount of driving:'' | ''Now, for coal power plants charging EVs, same amount of driving:'' | ||
{{calc | {{calc | ||
|average_us_vehicle.mileage_by_time | |coal.ghg_by_energy * average_us_vehicle.mileage_by_time / fuel_economy_if_coal | ||
|tonnes / year | |tonnes / year | ||
|coal_ghg | |coal_ghg | ||
}} | }} | ||
''Now, for advanced natural gas power plants charging EVs, same amount of driving:'' | ''Now, for advanced natural gas power plants charging EVs, same amount of driving:'' | ||
{{calc | {{calc | ||
|average_us_vehicle.mileage_by_time | |(natural_gas.ghg_by_energy + natural_gas.fugitive_ghg_by_energy) * average_us_vehicle.mileage_by_time / fuel_economy_if_advanced_natural_gas | ||
|tonnes / year | |tonnes / year | ||
|advanced_natural_gas_ghg | |advanced_natural_gas_ghg | ||
}} | }} | ||
Line 197: | Line 233: | ||
}} | }} | ||
Thus, emissions are | Thus, with coal power, emissions are worse than driving a gasoline-powered car. But for ''advanced'' natural gas power plants, emissions are about half. In either case, this doesn't count the other environmental impacts {{light|(non-CO<sub>2</sub>)}} of mining lithium & cobalt. | ||
<!-- TODO: redo this with more precision: coal.ghg_by_energy and natural_gas.ghg_by_energy? but then what about fugitive emissions? maybe make a datapoint "natural_gas.fugitive_ghg_by_energy" that factors it in --> | <!-- TODO: redo this with more precision: coal.ghg_by_energy and natural_gas.ghg_by_energy? but then what about fugitive emissions? maybe make a datapoint "natural_gas.fugitive_ghg_by_energy" that factors it in --> |
Revision as of 22:55, 3 April 2023
If you charge an electric car with electricity that was generated by fossil fuels, is it as bad for the environment as driving a gas car?
Short answer
Yes.
The carbon emissions are about the same as gas cars, if the electricity is generated by
- coal power plants
- simple natural gas power plants
For advanced natural gas power plants, which are more efficient, best-case carbon emissions are about half of what they'd be from driving a gas car.
Long answer
For coal power plants:
ecocostsavings.com › average-electric-car-kwh-per-mile
from wikipedia; haven't found original source yet
www.eia.gov › tools › faqs › faq
Nov 4, 2021 · "The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates that electricity transmission and distribution (T&D) losses equaled about 5% of ..."
https://www.energy.gov/fecm/transformative-power-systems
Citation:
"The average fuel economy for new 2020 model year cars, light trucks and SUVs in the United States was 25.4 miles per US gallon (9.3 L/100 km)."
- Fuel economy in automobiles - Wikipedia
(calculation loading)
For natural gas power plants:
Some have the same efficiency as coal power plants (33%). Results would be about the same as above.
Other natural gas power plants (the more advanced "combined-cycle" type) are more efficient: up to 60%:
Simpler/older natural gas plants (no combined cycle) have only an efficiency of 33%, same as [coal_power_plant.efficiency].
Read more: https://energyeducation.ca/encyclopedia/Natural_gas_power_plant
(calculation loading)
https://ev-database.org/cheatsheet/useable-battery-capacity-electric-car
What is the environmental impact of lithium batteries? - Changeit ...
changeit.app › blog › 2021-03-26-environmental-impact-of-lithium-batteries
Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2014
https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/inventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks-1990-2014
2016 Complete Report (PDF)
Using data from 2014
Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2014
https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/inventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks-1990-2014
2016 Complete Report (PDF)
Datapoint was found on page 115, from pie chart and line graph, using data from 2014
https://www.eia.gov/environment/emissions/co2_vol_mass.php
https://www.api.org/news-policy-and-issues/blog/2022/05/26/top-numbers-driving-americas-gasoline-demand
Citation:
"The average fuel economy for new 2020 model year cars, light trucks and SUVs in the United States was 25.4 miles per US gallon (9.3 L/100 km)."
- Fuel economy in automobiles - Wikipedia
So far, we still haven't counted the environmental impact of making an electric car, which is significantly more than for a gasoline-powered car:
For simplicity sake, we're just going to count the emissions of making the batteries, and assume that making the rest of the car would take roughly the same emissions as making a gasoline-powered vehicle:
Estimate for lithium-ion electric cars: (calculation loading)
Now compare for the gasoline a non-electric car would burn, on average: (calculation loading)
Now, for coal power plants charging EVs, same amount of driving: (calculation loading)
Now, for advanced natural gas power plants charging EVs, same amount of driving: (calculation loading)
Add the battery emissions: (calculation loading)
(calculation loading)
Now, for the final comparison: (calculation loading)
(calculation loading)
Thus, with coal power, emissions are worse than driving a gasoline-powered car. But for advanced natural gas power plants, emissions are about half. In either case, this doesn't count the other environmental impacts (non-CO2) of mining lithium & cobalt.
Maybe there would be a good case for fossil-fuel-electricity-powered vehicles if carbon capture and storage could be fully & safely applied to the power plants.