Larger electric vehicles are ‘failing to substantially reduce greenhouse gas emissions in comparison to small conventional vehicles’, a new study has claimed.
The study, Super-sized electric vehicles (EVs) will not solve the climate crisis, which was published in the PLOS Sustainability and Transformation journal, noted that as EVs have got larger, the weight of lithium-ion batteries in said vehicles has increased by 68% over a five-year period.
‘Energy intensive’
“Larger size EVs with greater range require heavier lithium-ion batteries with more energy intensive inputs and greater lifetime carbon emissions,” author Perry Gottesfeld explained.
“Consumer messaging glosses over the energy and environmental impacts of increasingly larger EVs with heavier batteries. Government subsidies and tax incentives should be better aligned to account for greenhouse gas emissions over the vehicle lifecycle.”
According to the study, the average battery weight in the ten most popular EV models is 595 kilograms, with some models, such as the GMC Hummer EV, surpassing 1,326 kilograms.
As current recycling technologies for EV batteries remain limited, this raises concern over the future processing of such large units. In addition, the study also notes that the production of larger EV batteries generates 70% more carbon dioxide than smaller batteries due to the energy-intensive processes involved in mineral extraction, manufacturing, and assembly.
‘Minimise impacts’
“Sustainability of the transition to EVs depends on addressing vehicle and battery sizing to lower GHG emissions, ensure the availability of critical mineral supplies and to minimise impacts from mining and ore processing,” Gottesfeld added.
“Even if EV sizes remain constant, it is projected that electricity capacity in the US will need to increase by 30% to power EVs. The shift to larger vehicles will present an increasing challenge to efforts to decarbonise the electricity grid while attempting to keep pace with EV adoption in future decades.”
Gottesfeld also urged governments to restructure subsidies and tax incentives to reflect greenhouse gas emissions across the entire lifecycle of vehicles. Read more here.
