Competitiveness Of Electric Vehicles Research Articles

On the competitiveness of electric driving in France: Impact of driving patterns

Abstract The environmental issues in the transport sector are numerous and CO2 capture is not even plausible for vehicles at the moment. This report describes a number of different emergent power train technologies (ICE, BEV, PHEV, FCEV) before providing an inter-comparison of these technologies within a technical and economic context. The economical benefits are discussed in terms of the “Difference of Total Cost of Ownership” (DTCO) and take: electric driving distances, energy (fuel, electricity, hydrogen) prices, batteries and fuel cells costs. To simulate electric driving distances, the model uses several functional parameters such as the battery range and the ‘range anxiety’ based on the assumption of one recharge per day. The potential electric driving distances are evaluated according to the segmentation statistics of daily trips. The results show the yearly mileages, as well as the range and cost of batteries and fuel cells, together with their relative impact on the DTCO and on the competitiveness of electric vehicles. The price of electric vehicles remains high with strong dependency on the battery׳s capacity, but the benefits in terms of fuel cost savings can be considerable. The price of electricity is currently noticeably lower than petroleum-based fuels, which balances the high costs of the batteries. 50% or more of LDV yearly mileages can be electric-driven, even for limited battery ranges (ca. under 50 km). There are stakes for the battery costs (competitiveness under €215/kWh) and lifetimes, while the low battery ranges (100 km in our case) provide the best margins. As regards FCEVs, the hydrogen target price at the pump should be achievable (less than €6.5/kg) with reasonable gasoline prices (€1.7/liter at the pump) and fuel cell costs (€20/kW). CO2 taxes and ICE efficiency gains will lead to opposite impacts of the H2 target prices at the pump.

Polymer electrolytes and the electric vehicle

Despite their promise for major environmental and resource conservation benefits, electric vehicles to date have failed to capture significant applications, primarily because of the limitations of lead acid and nickel cadmium batteries. Emerging advanced batteries with high specific energy and fuel cells with high power density are now increasing the prospects for competitiveness of electric vehicles. Polymer electrolytes are playing important roles in these developments. The invention of polymer electrolytes is enabling the safe use of metallic lithium in batteries. Prototypical lithium polymer batteries using metal oxide positives capable of reversibly accepting lithium ions are achieving specific energies that meet the targets for electric vehicle application, and the emergence of cell technologies in which lithium metal is coupled with polymer electrolytes and active sulfur positives is holding out promise for yet higher specific energies. Polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell technology is particularly well suited for mobile applications. A decade of R&D to maximize the three-phase boundary area between catalyst/conductor, polymer electrolyte and reactant gases has increased PEM fuel cell catalyst utilization and power density to levels acceptable for electric vehicle propulsion. The emphasis in battery and fuel cell polymer electrolyte development is now shifting to electrolyte, cell and module/stack manufacturing development and cost reduction, but continued research to understand and enhance bulk and interface properties of polymer electrolytes is likely to have significant practical payoff on the way to broadly competitive electric vehicles.

Prospects for electric vehicles

The state-of-the-art of electric vehicles (EVs) is discussed with examples of prototype vehicles-Electric G-Van, Chrysler TEVan, Eaton DSEP, and Ford/GE ETX-II. The acceleration, top speed, and range of these electric vehicles are delineated to demonstrate their performance capabilities, which are comparable with conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. The prospects for the commercialization of the Electric G-van and the TEVan and the improvements expected from the AC drive systems of the DSEP and ETX-II vehicles are discussed. The impacts of progress made in the development of a fuel cell/battery hybrid bus and advanced EVs on the competitiveness of EVs with ICE vehicles, and their potential for reduction of air pollution and utility load management are postulated. >