Cradle-to-Grave Lifecycle Analysis of Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Light-Duty Passenger Vehicles in China: Towards a Carbon-Neutral Future

Yu Gan (), Zifeng Lu, Xin He, Michael Wang and Amer Ahmad Amer
Additional contact information
Yu Gan: Energy Systems and Infrastructure Analysis Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL 60439, USA
Zifeng Lu: Energy Systems and Infrastructure Analysis Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL 60439, USA
Xin He: Aramco Americas, Aramco Research Center–Detroit, Novi, MI 48377, USA
Michael Wang: Energy Systems and Infrastructure Analysis Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL 60439, USA
Amer Ahmad Amer: Research and Development Center, Saudi Aramco, P.O. Box 62, Dhahran 31311, Saudi Arabia

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 3, 1-14

Abstract: Vehicle electrification is considered a pathway for on-road transportation decarbonization in China. Different from the conventional gasoline vehicles whose emissions are mainly released from vehicle tailpipes, emissions of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are from the upstream processes of electricity generation and vehicle manufacturing, thus a comprehensive lifecycle analysis and comparison of BEVs with gasoline vehicles is required to quantify the emission mitigation benefit of vehicle electrification and determine the path to a carbon-neutral future. In the study, we compare the cradle-to-grave (C2G) lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions of gasoline and electric vehicles in China and analyze the greenhouse gas emission reduction of vehicle electrification in different provinces. Results show that under the current technologies, the national average C2G GHG emissions for battery electric vehicles (BEVs) of 100 miles (i.e., 160 km) and 300 miles (i.e., 480 km) all-electric range (AER) are 231 and 279 g CO 2 eq/km, respectively, 22% and 5% lower than those for gasoline internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs). Improving vehicle fuel efficiency by hybridizing gasoline ICEVs can effectively reduce C2G emissions to 212 g CO 2 eq/km. At the provincial level, C2G GHG emissions of BEVs vary according to the provincial electricity mix. In eight provinces, C2G GHG emissions of BEVs with 300 miles AER (BEV300s) are higher than those of gasoline ICEVs due to the GHG-intensive coal-based electricity mix. In the future scenario, with low carbon fuels (such as high-level bioethanol blending gasoline) and electricity decarbonization, the national average C2G emissions of hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and BEV300s can be reduced to 55 and 73 g CO 2 eq/km, respectively. Further decrease of C2G GHG emissions relies on reducing vehicle-cycle emissions from material processing and vehicle component manufacturing.

Keywords: cradle-to-grave; decarbonization; electric vehicle; greenhouse gas; lifecycle analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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