Timing of EV Battery Charging Could Lower Carbon Footprint Further
The future of transportation is electric. In a bid to reduce carbon emissions and improve air quality, several countries, cities and states have announced plans to gradually phase out internal combustion engine vehicles for emission-free electric vehicles (“EVs”). Transportation, specifically passenger sedans and SUVs, presently account for close to 20% of carbon emissions in the Unites States, and research has proven that switching to rechargeable EVs can reduce carbon emissions by a wide margin.
According to a recent study published in “Environmental Science and Technology,” we can further reduce emissions by tackling one of the major issues still plaguing the EV industry: charging batteries. Although electric vehicles produce zero emissions at the tailpipe, they are charged and recharged using electricity that is largely generated by fossil fuels. Additionally, tons of energy, usually generated through fossil fuels, is required to manufacture the vehicles, especially the batteries. Researchers at the MIT Energy Initiative (“MITE”) have proven that drivers can reduce these emissions by charging their EVs at different times of the day.
For instance, night charging in California, which is the highest solar-power generating state in the country, produces 70% more emissions compared to daytime charging. Charging around midday when there is more solar energy powering the grid requires less reliance on fossil fuels to generate the electricity and consequently reduces emissions. On the other hand, drivers in a state such as New York, which largely relies on nuclear and hydro power to generate electricity at night. would reduce emissions by 20% if they charged overnight.
The two common EV-emission modeling approaches have a margin of error, which cause them to ignore temperature variation in fuel economy and hourly variation in the grid. The researchers calculated this margin of error and found that in 30% of the cases, the combined error exceeds 10%. In California, which is home to half of the EVs in the country, the combined error is about 50%. By using a novel approach dubbed the “average day” method, the researchers conducted a case study examining how renewable growth would impact future EV emissions in the Southeastern United States, which has a robust solar system, from 2018 to 2032.
They found that charging EVs overnight would reduce emissions by only 16% while charging them at midday reduced carbon emissions by about 50%, assuming the conservative grid projections from the U.S. Energy Information Administration hold true. By 2032, EV emissions per mile will be 30% lower if charged overnight and 65% lower if EVs are charged at midday.
The push to go green is attracting interest within the business and investor communities. For example, Clean Power Capital Corp. (CSE: MOVE) (FWB: 2K6A) (OTC: MOTNF) is a holding company for investments, and it is currently specializing in financing as well as investing in renewable energy firms.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Clean Power Capital Corp. (CSE: MOVE) (FWB: 2K6A) (OTC: MOTNF) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/MOTNF
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the Green Car Stocks website applicable to all content provided by GCS, wherever published or re-published: https://www.GreenCarStocks.com/Disclaimer
The future of transportation is electric. In a bid to reduce carbon emissions and improve air quality, several countries, cities and states have announced plans to gradually phase out internal combustion engine vehicles for emission-free electric vehicles (“EVs”). Transportation, specifically passenger sedans and SUVs, presently account for close to 20% of carbon emissions in the Unites States, and research has proven that switching to rechargeable EVs can reduce carbon emissions by a wide margin.
According to a recent study published in “Environmental Science and Technology,” we can further reduce emissions by tackling one of the major issues still plaguing the EV industry: charging batteries. Although electric vehicles produce zero emissions at the tailpipe, they are charged and recharged using electricity that is largely generated by fossil fuels. Additionally, tons of energy, usually generated through fossil fuels, is required to manufacture the vehicles, especially the batteries. Researchers at the MIT Energy Initiative (“MITE”) have proven that drivers can reduce these emissions by charging their EVs at different times of the day.
For instance, night charging in California, which is the highest solar-power generating state in the country, produces 70% more emissions compared to daytime charging. Charging around midday when there is more solar energy powering the grid requires less reliance on fossil fuels to generate the electricity and consequently reduces emissions. On the other hand, drivers in a state such as New York, which largely relies on nuclear and hydro power to generate electricity at night. would reduce emissions by 20% if they charged overnight.
The two common EV-emission modeling approaches have a margin of error, which cause them to ignore temperature variation in fuel economy and hourly variation in the grid. The researchers calculated this margin of error and found that in 30% of the cases, the combined error exceeds 10%. In California, which is home to half of the EVs in the country, the combined error is about 50%. By using a novel approach dubbed the “average day” method, the researchers conducted a case study examining how renewable growth would impact future EV emissions in the Southeastern United States, which has a robust solar system, from 2018 to 2032.
They found that charging EVs overnight would reduce emissions by only 16% while charging them at midday reduced carbon emissions by about 50%, assuming the conservative grid projections from the U.S. Energy Information Administration hold true. By 2032, EV emissions per mile will be 30% lower if charged overnight and 65% lower if EVs are charged at midday.
The push to go green is attracting interest within the business and investor communities. For example, Clean Power Capital Corp. (CSE: MOVE) (FWB: 2K6A) (OTC: MOTNF) is a holding company for investments, and it is currently specializing in financing as well as investing in renewable energy firms.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Clean Power Capital Corp. (CSE: MOVE) (FWB: 2K6A) (OTC: MOTNF) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/MOTNF
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the Green Car Stocks website applicable to all content provided by GCS, wherever published or re-published: https://www.GreenCarStocks.com/Disclaimer
