Challenges and opportunities in truck electrification revealed by big operational data

Pei Zhao, Shaojun Zhang (), Paolo Santi, Dingsong Cui, Fang Wang, Peng Liu, Zhaosheng Zhang, Jin Liu, Zhenpo Wang (), Carlo Ratti and Ye Wu ()
Additional contact information
Pei Zhao: Tsinghua University
Shaojun Zhang: Tsinghua University
Paolo Santi: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Dingsong Cui: Beijing Institute of Technology
Fang Wang: Tsinghua University
Peng Liu: Beijing Institute of Technology
Zhaosheng Zhang: Beijing Institute of Technology
Jin Liu: Beijing Institute of Technology
Zhenpo Wang: Beijing Institute of Technology
Carlo Ratti: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Ye Wu: Tsinghua University

Nature Energy, 2024, vol. 9, issue 11, 1427-1437

Abstract: Abstract The electrification of trucks is a major challenge in achieving zero-emission transportation. Here we gathered year-long records from 61,598 electric trucks in China. Current electric trucks were found to be significantly underutilized compared with their diesel counterparts. Twenty-three per cent of electric delivery trucks and 30% of semi-trailers could achieve one-on-one replacement with diesel counterparts, while on average 3.8 electric delivery trucks and 3.6 electric semi-trailers are required to match the transportation demand that is served by one diesel truck separately. For diesel trucks that are capable of one-on-one replacement, electric trucks have 15–54% and 1–49% reductions in cost and life-cycle CO2 emissions, respectively. Enhancements in usage patterns, vehicle technologies and charging infrastructure can improve electrification feasibility, yielding cost and decarbonization benefits. Increased battery energy densities with optimized usage can make one-on-one electrification feasible for more than 85% of diesel semi-trailers. In addition, with cleaner electricity, most Chinese electric trucks in 2030 will have lower expected life-cycle CO2 emissions than diesel trucks.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41560-024-01602-x

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