Electric cars : The climate impact of electric cars, focusing on carbon dioxide equivalent emissions

Abstract: This bachelor thesis examines and models the emissions of carbon dioxide equivalents of the composition of automobiles in Sweden 2012. The report will be based on three scenarios of electricity valuation principles, which are a snapshot perspective, a retrospective perspective and a future perspective. The snapshot perspective includes high and low values for electricity on the margin, the retrospective perspective includes Nordic and European electricity mix and the future perspective includes electricity on the margin for modest and high climate goals at 2030. The study is applied to an upcoming climate smart district, Brunnshög in Lund, and the goal is to determine the amount of emissions of carbon dioxide equivalents for the mentioned alternatives. The environmental effects depends largely on the fuel consumption for the compared types of cars and what electricity valuation principle that is used. The car fleet of 2012 generated 10 300 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions. The future car fleet generated 400 tonnes of emissions for Nordic electricity mix, 3 200 tonnes for European electricity mix, 3 100 tonnes for electricity on the margin with low values, 5 800 tonnes for electricity on the margin with high values, 1 200 tonnes for electricity on the margin at 2030 for high climate goals and 4 600 tonnes for electricity on the margin at 2030 for modest climate goals. The emissions of carbon dioxide equivalents are at least halved in Brunnshög if 100 % electric cars are used instead of the composition of petrol, diesel and ethanol cars that are primarily used in Sweden 2012. Hence, the result shows that the electric car is very beneficial from an environmental and health perspective, compared to the composition of cars in Sweden 2012. However, how beneficial the electric car is, largely depends on the fuel consumption for both the electric car and the alternative compared with. Although to be able to increase the use of electric cars there are many challenges that need to be dealt with. In order to increase the use of electric cars, it will require further work in the development of batteries, expansion of charging points and other incentives, such as legislation and investments. It will also require a significant technology development to increase the range of the electric car. A natural step in the transition phase could be plug-in hybrids. It is also important to continue to implement climate smart districts, such as Brunnshög in Lund.