Decarbonization potential of on-road fuels and powertrains in the European Union and the United States: a well-to-wheels assessment

Cai, Hao; Prussi, Matteo; Ou, Longwen; Wang, Michael; Yugo, Marta; Laura, Lonza; Scarlat, Nicolae

doi:10.1039/d2se00411a

Cited by 14 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…It can be considered that the rise of these studies is directly driven by the country's increasing interest in clean fuels, particularly in the transportation sector and hydrogen production for fuel cells. 71 Therefore, it is expected that the number of contributions will continue to grow in the academic landscape, given the significant number of countries that have dedicated themselves to scientific production in this field over the past two years.…”

Section: Advanced Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolving sustainable energy technologies and assessments through global research networks: advancing the role of blue hydrogen for a cleaner future

Cavalcante,

Simão Neto,

Sousa

et al. 2024

RSC Sustain.

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Section: Advanced Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolving sustainable energy technologies and assessments through global research networks: advancing the role of blue hydrogen for a cleaner future

Cavalcante,

Simão Neto,

Sousa

et al. 2024

RSC Sustain.

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“…The LCA tool is used to assess the potential benefits of each solution. In this regard, key works for the EU context are RICARDO [26] and JEC [27], while a comparison with the US approach is discussed in [28]. In the scientific literature, the GHG impact of the fuels is commonly assessed under a WTW approach [29], which allows estimating the total GHG emissions of fuel production and use in a specific powertrain.…”

Section: Lca-based Tools For Hd Sector Ghg Assessmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparing e-Fuels and Electrification for Decarbonization of Heavy-Duty Transports

et al. 2022

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The freight sector is expected to keep, or even increase, its fundamental role for the major modern economies, and therefore actions to limit the growing pressure on the environment are urgent. The use of electricity is a major option for the decarbonization of transports; in the heavy-duty segment, it can be implemented in different ways: besides full electric-battery powertrains, electricity can be used to supply catenary roads, or can be chemically stored in liquid or gaseous fuels (e-fuels). While the current EU legislation adopts a tailpipe Tank-To-Wheels approach, which results in zero emissions for all direct uses of electricity, a Well-To-Wheels (WTW) method would allow accounting for the potential benefits of using sustainable fuels such as e-fuels. In this article, we have performed a WTW-based comparison and modelling of the options for using electricity to supply heavy-duty vehicles: e-fuels, eLNG, eDiesel, and liquid Hydrogen. Results showed that the direct use of electricity can provide high Greenhouse Gas (GHG) savings, and also in the case of the e-fuels when low-carbon-intensity electricity is used for their production. While most studies exclusively focus on absolute GHG savings potential, considerations of the need for new infrastructures, and the technological maturity of some options, are fundamental to compare the different technologies. In this paper, an assessment of such technological and non-technological barriers has been conducted, in order to compare alternative pathways for the heavy-duty sector. Among the available options, the flexibility of using drop-in, energy-dense liquid fuels represents a clear and substantial immediate advantage for decarbonization. Additionally, the novel approach adopted in this paper allows us to quantify the potential benefits of using e-fuels as chemical storage able to accumulate electricity from the production peaks of variable renewable energies, which would otherwise be wasted due to grid limitations.

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“…3 They can reduce the well-to-wheel (WtW) GHG emissions even further. 4 Figure 1 shows the total hydrocarbon (THC), ethanol (C 2 H 5 OH), acetylene (C 2 H 2 ), pentane (C 5 H 12 ), aromatics, and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions over the relative air/fuel ratio (l) for one load point of the single-cylinder engine used for the investigations presented in this manuscript. It can be observed that with an increase in the relative air/fuel ratio from 1 to approximately 1.2, there is initially a reduction in total hydrocarbon emissions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of the near-wall gas composition in SI-engines using fast gas sampling

Fischer

Lehrheuer

Pischinger

2023

International Journal of Engine Research

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Future internal combustion engines using novel fuels and combustion systems have the potential to achieve ultra-high efficiency and lowest pollutant emissions to comply with future regulatory requirements. Realizing indicated efficiencies over 50% with ultra-lean low temperature combustion face new challenges. To meet this goal, hydrocarbon (HC) and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions need to be reduced significantly further. To do this, knowledge must be gained about how the operation regime of the engine affects the HC and CO emissions. Since these emissions partly originate from areas where flame quenching occurs, an investigation of the gases near the wall is of interest. To this end a fast gas sampling method is being developed to extract and analyze the gas from the combustion chamber. The used fast gas sampling valve from Kistler enables sampling durations of less than 1 ms. Fourier-transform-infrared spectroscopy and a fast mass spectroscopy allow the determination of the sample composition. The valve is positioned inside the cylinder head of a single cylinder engine between intake and exhaust valves. In order to assess the effects of engine operating conditions on the formation of HC and CO at the cylinder walls, the measurement uncertainty of the setup must be evaluated. Since the combustion process is subject to cyclic variations, the evaluation of only a few individual measurements is not meaningful. Therefore, mean values are determined from the evaluation of several measurements not performed consecutively. By examining the mean and standard deviation of these measurements for each species, one can determine a measurement error. In comparison, lean operation with RON95E10 fuel at an IMEP = 12 bar and an engine speed of n = 2000 1/min shows a significant reduction in intermediate hydrocarbon species such as acetylene and a significant increase in fuel species such as ethanol compared to stoichiometric operation.

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Decarbonization potential of on-road fuels and powertrains in the European Union and the United States: a well-to-wheels assessment

Abstract: Life-cycle analysis is essential to assessing the greenhouse gas impacts and decarbonization potential of transportation fuels and vehicle powertrains.

Cited by 14 publications

References 22 publications

Evolving sustainable energy technologies and assessments through global research networks: advancing the role of blue hydrogen for a cleaner future

Evolving sustainable energy technologies and assessments through global research networks: advancing the role of blue hydrogen for a cleaner future

Comparing e-Fuels and Electrification for Decarbonization of Heavy-Duty Transports

Evaluation of the near-wall gas composition in SI-engines using fast gas sampling

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