Economic and environmental comparison of conventional, hybrid, electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles

Abstract Published data from various sources are used to perform economic and environmental comparisons of four types of vehicles: conventional, hybrid, electric and hydrogen fuel cell. The production and utilization stages of the vehicles are taken into consideration. The comparison is based on a mathematical procedure, which includes normalization of economic indicators (prices of vehicles and fuels during the vehicle life and driving range) and environmental indicators (greenhouse gas and air pollution emissions), and evaluation of an optimal relationship between the types of vehicles in the fleet. According to the comparison, hybrid and electric cars exhibit advantages over the other types. The economic efficiency and environmental impact of electric car use depends substantially on the source of the electricity. If the electricity comes from renewable energy sources, the electric car is advantageous compared to the hybrid. If electricity comes from fossil fuels, the electric car remains competitive only if the electricity is generated on board. It is shown that, if electricity is generated with an efficiency of about 50–60% by a gas turbine engine connected to a high-capacity battery and an electric motor, the electric car becomes advantageous. Implementation of fuel cells stacks and ion conductive membranes into gas turbine cycles permits electricity generation to increase to the above-mentioned level and air pollution emissions to decrease. It is concluded that the electric car with on-board electricity generation represents a significant and flexible advance in the development of efficient and ecologically benign vehicles.

[1]  I. Dincer,et al.  Life cycle assessment of hydrogen fuel cell and gasoline vehicles , 2006 .

[2]  P. Meier.  Life-cycle assessment of electricity generation systems and applications for climate change policy analysis , 2002 .

[3]  Michail Rantik,et al.  LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT OF FIVE BATTERIES FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES UNDER DIFFERENT CHARGING REGIMES. , 1999 .

[4]  Pamela L. Spath,et al.  Life Cycle Assessment of Hydrogen Production via Natural Gas Steam Reforming , 2000 .

[5]  G. G Harding.  Electric vehicles in the next millennium , 1999 .

[6]  Ibrahim Dincer,et al.  Environmental and economic aspects of hydrogen production and utilization in fuel cell vehicles , 2006 .

[7]  Ibrahim Dincer,et al.  Application of oxygen ion-conductive membranes for simultaneous electricity and hydrogen generation , 2006 .

[8]  V. Putsche,et al.  Survey of the Economics of Hydrogen Technologies , 1999 .

[9]  M. Pehnt.  Life-cycle assessment of fuel cell stacks , 2001 .

[10]  Gary A. Davis,et al.  LIFE-CYCLE ENVIRONMENTAL EVALUATION OF ALUMINUM AND COMPOSITE INTENSIVE VEHICLES , 2001 .

[11]  Anant D Vyas,et al.  BATTERIES FOR ELECTRIC DRIVE VEHICLES EVALUATION OF FUTURE CHARACTERISTICS AND COSTS THROUGH A DELPHI STUDY. , 1997 .

[12]  H. Ho,et al.  Modelling of simple hybrid solid oxide fuel cell and gas turbine power plant , 2002 .

[13]  Nigel P. Brandon,et al.  Impact of the European Union vehicle waste directive on end-of-life options for polymer electrolyte fuel cells , 2002 .

[14]  Grant Arnold,et al.  Life-Cycle Value Assessment (LCVA) of Fuel Supply Options for Fuel Cell Vehicles , 2003 .