Electric Cars 2

 Electric cars are the future of transportation and there is little debate about it worldwide. They provide us with a much better alternative compared to fossil fuel-based vehicles(mainly petrol and diesel). They are easy to use, accessible and pave the way for newer and more advanced technologies such as self-driving cars and better connectivity options. It is also said that electric cars are less harmful to the environment than fossil fuels, the burning of which emits dangerous gases such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulphur and nitrogen oxides etc. But, are they the messiah that they are framed to be? Is there a dark side to electric cars? And even more importantly, exactly how accessible is this future?

Fossil fuels and emissions

Electric cars are being brought in the market as a replacement to cars that run on fossil fuels. Fossil fuels have been now firmly established as one of the main contributors to global climate change. They help this vile cause because they emit various harmful gases on burning(as mentioned above) which contribute to the Greenhouse effect and global warming. Fossil fuels have been used as the primary source of fuel for transportation since cars, or any type of automobiles for that matter were invented. The first modern oil well was dug by the Russian Major Alekseev, who also built a refinery at that spot. But the first major refinery was built in Russia(near Baku) by Meerzoefff and then the word spread like wildfire. More and more oil wells were discovered and dug up in Eastern Europe and soon, in the 1850s and 1860s, Bucharest(the capital of Romania) became the first city in the modern world to be illuminated by distilled crude oil. Subsequently, more and more production started to take place in the Russian Empire and the US and petroleum became the main source of energy worldwide.  

As the rise of petroleum in the late 1880s was imminent, not surprisingly, the first car to run on petroleum was made in 1885 by the German inventor Karl Benz, about whom we have heard a little the last time. After that, this magic juice has continued its reign on automobiles, even after 120 years. 

The world discovered the harmful effects of fossil fuel for the first time during the Industrial Revolution. Coal was the most popular fuel then and was used in almost everything. Huge factories emitted huge amounts of smoke, which some say remains in the air of in those countries until now. The disasters related to coal mining are also well known. The harmful effects of petroleum became apparent in the late twentieth century. As more and more people studied the environmental impact of petroleum, its effects became apparent. Consequently, people also became aware of global warming, ozone depletion, climate change etc. Many reforms such as timely checks on the emission capacities of vehicles(what we call the Bharat or Euro stages), encouragement of alternatives such as CNG, LPG, electricity and even hydrogen fuel cells began. Though governments brought on these reforms, no drastic actions were taken. Emissions continued and the planet took on the burden. The turn of the century saw more of these reforms. Various citizen movements began to take shape and along with it the rise of electric cars. 

Electricity and emissions 

Electric cars do not produce emissions when they travel as fossil fuel-based cars do. So on the first impression, it looks like they produce no emissions at all. But, this proves to be a false equivalency. For example, when we walk, we don’t produce harmful gases. That doesn’t mean though that we don’t have a carbon footprint. The amount of carbon(say) that a person produces is calculated from what one eats, how much electricity one consumes, how they travel etc. In the same way, the total emissions of an electric car are calculated throughout its manufacturing process. This includes the manufacturing of the body as well as the battery. According to a study done by the International Council on Clean Transportation the average European fossil fuel-based car produces about 250 g/km of CO2 in its lifetime. An average plug-in hybrid car produces about 150 and the average electric car produces about a 100. This figure varies with country, company, car and local electricity production. Hence, it does seem that the total emissions of an electric car are less, they are, nonetheless substantial. This means that if we are aiming for targets such as carbon neutrality, just manufacturing and using electric cars like they are right now will not be enough. But the good thing about electric cars is that they have more scope to improve.

What next

The study I have mentioned above explains in detail the steps we can take to reduce the emissions of electric cars. These include but are not limited to: 

Grid decarbonization - reducing the emissions of electricity grids

Reusing, recycling and generally improving batteries - Electric cars use lithium-ion batteries, which require immense processing from start to finish and hence emit a lot. After they are used in electric cars they still can be reused in stationary applications(Jon Snow vibes? No? Ok.).

Renewable sources of energy - Electric cars will generate the need of a lot more electricity. If this new electricity is generated(see what I did there?) using renewable sources of energy, it will help the noble cause a little bit too. Renewable sources like wind, solar,  hydroelectricity etc can be used.  

However difficult the above solutions may be, one thing we can say is that governments of different countries view this the same way. Right now, electric cars offer no major point of hindrance to their widespread use. Countries such as Norway, Finland, Germany, China, India and most recently even England have jumped on the bandwagon of electric cars. Recently, the Prime Minister of England announced that the UK will ban the sale of all petroleum-based cars by 2030 and the use of them by 2040. These may seem drastic steps but they are necessary. China is the global leader in the sale and use of electric vehicles and Norway is the leader when you consider the factor of population. 

Probably the most famous and exciting company that makes electric cars right now is Elon Musk’s Tesla. Their model S and X are one of the most sold electric cars today. But, it is not all so easy. Some of Tesla’s cars boast battery ranges of 300 miles and some even more. But is that all that an electric car can achieve? Is this futuristic invention coming to saturation? How can these technologies be implemented in developing countries such as India? Many questions like this are still to be answered. I will try my best to do so next week. Till then, keep following Le Concordian!

     - Authored by Miheer Karandikar