Funding to address high-carbon emissions from the transportation sector.
Witnessing the worsening and dire effects of climate change, the Biden administration is pushing harder on the pedal of solutions, namely cutting CO2 emissions. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the transportation sector accounted for about 29 percent of emissions in the country in 2019. With much of that coming from vehicles, the Department of Energy announced allocating $60 million toward the advancement of zero-emissions vehicles earlier this summer.
An EV charging at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s Power Systems Lab in the Energy Systems Integration Facility. (Image courtesy of Science in HD/Unsplash.)
“Fossil-fuel-powered cars and trucks are a leading cause of air pollution and carbon emissions, and that is why we are focusing on decarbonizing the transportation sector to achieve President Biden’s climate goals,” said Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “Partnering with industry and leading research universities, DOE’s investment in these 24 projects will create technologies and techniques that will cut vehicle greenhouse emissions and boost America’s competitiveness in the global clean energy market.”
The funding will go toward 24 research and development projects aimed at passenger cars and light and heavy-duty trucks as part of a broader push to achieve a net-zero emissions economy by 2050. Passenger cars and light-duty trucks account for about 60 percent of transportation-related emissions while heavy-duty trucks account for nearly 25 percent. The projects will be funded through the DOE’s Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Vehicles Technology office.
The bulk of the funding will go toward enhancing electric vehicle (EV) battery technology, often viewed as one of the greatest limitations to expanding EVs. In addition to a dearth of EV charging stations, a lack of long battery life has been an impediment to consumer adoption.
$28.1 million will go toward 12 projects focusing on developing the next generation of lithium-ion batteries that possess a longer lifespan, safety and affordability, as well as increasing the power density of electric drive systems. One initiative by Navitas Advanced Solutions Group will use fluorinated glyme electrolytes to extend Li-S battery life.
“Michigan has long been the heart of the auto industry, and we’re working every single day to ensure that statement remains true,” said U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell. “We must keep the United States at the forefront of technology and innovation. With over $1.6 million to Navitas Advanced Solutions Group in Ann Arbor, we can work toward that goal. This critical funding from the Department of Energy to advance next-generation electric vehicles batteries will accelerate the increased deployment of electric vehicles and create a pathway to a clean energy future.”
Another $20.2 million will fund six projects working on mobility technologies, such as automated electric shuttles and shared vehicle technologies. For example, a team at Western Michigan University is working on the development and validation of infrastructure-enabled, high-quality perception data for energy efficiency autonomous vehicle (AV) operation through computation reductions and offloading.
A project by Clemson University will garner $5.8 million for the development of a lightweight, multi-material vehicle passenger structure with an emphasis on overcoming challenges around the fusing of different materials. Two projects are earmarked for a total of $5.1 million to develop simulation tools to help optimize and develop advanced emissions systems for heavy-duty vehicles. Finally, $1 million will go toward three projects aimed at developing tools to understand infrastructure needs of heavy-duty EVs, including analysis of environmental cost, energy impacts and infrastructure upgrades.
“This nearly $2 million will be a well-deserved boost for WMU’s ongoing autonomous vehicle research,” said U.S. Representative Fred Upton. “Yes, climate change is real, and technology developed here at institutions like WMU will certainly chart a path forward for a cleaner tomorrow. Clean energy jobs will help rebuild the American economy and protect our planet.”
The funding comes alongside other moves by the administration to move the needle on energy-efficient vehicles. Last month, President Biden signed an executive order setting a goal that by 2030, half of all new vehicles sold in the U.S. will be zero-emission cars, including plug-in hybrids. Also in August, the EPA reversed the lax vehicle emissions standards set by the previous administration. The tightened regulations are estimated to result in avoiding 2.2 billion tons of CO2 emissions through 2050, which is roughly equivalent to one year of greenhouse gas emissions from all petroleum combustion in the U.S. in 2019. The agency is also working on separate regulations for reducing emissions from heavy-duty trucks, expected to be finalized in 2022.
“Pollution from trucks has been a long-standing obstacle to advancing environmental justice as many low-income and minority communities live near highways or in heavily polluted areas with frequent truck congestion and idling,” said EPA Administrator Michael Regan. “EPA is committed to walking our talk and delivering tangible benefits to historically underserved and overburdened communities. Setting clear and stringent standards for truck pollution is critical to delivering on this commitment.”
While the funding and more stringent regulations are a step in the right direction, they don’t encompass the full scope of the problem. Electrification of energy sources is increasingly being viewed as a path toward decarbonization. However, if all vehicle owners swapped out their gas-powered cars for EVs tomorrow, the electrical grid capacity wouldn’t be able to support it. Furthermore, the grid itself has yet to decarbonize, so vehicle charging itself still produces emissions.
Another issue is the embodied carbon of vehicles. A significant portion of carbon emissions is associated with the development and manufacturing of vehicles, which is separate from operational carbon. However, there is some movement on the part of automakers to address this. For example, Porsche announced that it will be switching to renewable energy for the production of all car components. Similarly, BMW said this month that it will be taking steps to reduce the carbon emissions across the lifecycle of its vehicles, including the production process. In a statement at the IAA Mobility conference in Munich, the automaker said it plans to increase the use of recycled and reusable materials in manufacturing from 30 percent to 50 percent.
California-based Fisker is taking things a step further by working to produce a climate-neutral vehicle by 2027. The company will assess the environmental impact of the vehicle during the five stages of the life cycle, which are sourcing, manufacturing, logistics, use phase, end-of-life recycling and reuse.
“As Fisker develops its emissions-free products, the company will endeavor to promote a circular economy by sourcing recycled materials and remanufactured components—and work to utilize public charging points running on 100 percent renewable energy,” said Fisker CEO Henrik Fisker. “We will prioritize partners with stated pledges to achieve climate neutrality. We already deployed cross-company teams focused on sourcing climate positive materials and critical components, such as aluminum, steel, electronics and lithium-ion batteries, from companies with carbon-neutral commitments.”
Stepping up production of EVs isn’t the only solution to slashing carbon emissions from the transportation sector. The hydrogen fuel cell vehicle market is also experiencing growth, especially for trucks. Automakers including Toyota, Hino, Hyundai, Volvo, Daimler, Cummins and Nikola are planning to put hydrogen-powered long-haul trucks on the market in the coming years. Additionally, India is proposing an $8 billion plan to incentivize companies to build both EVs and hydrogen-powered vehicles.
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are experiencing rising interest as a means to supplement EVs in the journey toward a carbon-free future. However, as with EVs, hydrogen vehicles aren’t necessarily completely emission-free either. Although the operation of a hydrogen vehicle involves no carbon emissions, the vehicles do emit water vapor from tailpipes, which is also a notable greenhouse gas.
