Comparative life cycle assessment of unmanned aerial vehicles, internal combustion engine vehicles and battery electric vehicles for grocery delivery

Abstract

Abstract Due to the emergence of online grocery shopping, grocery delivery services, and high-payload unmanned aerial vehicles (commonly referred to as drones) there is now more potential than ever for an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based grocery delivery service. This study explores multiple grocery delivery service models involving UAVs, internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs), and battery electric vehicles (BEVs). A cradle-to-grave analysis was completed for a suitable high-payload UAV. The analysis showed that the UAV use phase was dominant with respect to several relevant environmental impact categories. For the use phase comparison, the primary delivery service model included UAV operation during optimal weather conditions in tandem with ICEV operation during the remainder of the two-year study period. This delivery model was compared to two other reference models: 1) full-year ICEV operation and 2) full-year BEV operation. This study found that while UAVs have the potential to produce less environmental impacts, such as global warming potential, during the use phase compared to ICEVs, a fleet of ten UAVs consumes more energy per delivery-kilometer than a BEV in the use phase. This results in greater use phase environmental impacts associated with electricity generation. An economic cost comparison for the three different delivery models was also performed and found that high-payload UAVs are not yet an economically-feasible replacement for a long-range BEV in a grocery delivery application in terms of capital and fuel costs.