Abstract
For mankind, climate change will remain one of the salient topics for generations to come. The spotlight is currently on reducing carbon emissions in order to slow the trend of global warming. The World Economic Forum emphasized carbon mitigation in the Transportation industry due to it contributing 23% of global carbon emissions in 2015. As a result, the Transport industry has focussed on moving away from petrol and diesel propelled vehicles to designing and building electric vehicles due to the perception of electric vehicles as emitting less carbon dioxide.
A poorly defined life-cycle carbon footprint is a serious challenge when it comes to manufacturing as it may ultimately cause increased harm to the planet, as opposed to good. This research therefore focussed on identifying key contributors to the carbon footprint of an electric vehicle, identifying the gaps linked to the calculation methodology currently used for calculating the carbon footprint of electric vehicles.
In order to achieve the study’s objectives, firstly, the literature needed to be reviewed to identify gaps and key contributors identified by academic researchers. Secondly, the results of literature were compared to the results obtained from a case study questionnaire. As such, the study used a case study approach with the use of a quantitative analysis of the questionnaire used. The case study was performed on an earthmoving machinery manufacturing company currently making the transition to electric machinery. The core of the questionnaire comprised a section identifying the highest-ranking carbon dioxide life-cycle stages, followed by a section identifying the calculation gaps per life-cycle stage.
From the findings of the research, it could be concluded that electric vehicles were not green when viewed from the perspective of a third-world application with electricity generation technologies that are not clean. In these instances, electric vehicles have the effect of increasing carbon emissions from transportation, thus having a negative effect on the environment. Additionally, several life-cycle gaps were identified and found to be applicable, critically affecting the overall carbon footprint of an electric vehicle.
The use of this research will highlight key focus areas for improvement in the calculation and manufacturing methodology to ensure that electric vehicles are capable of reducing carbon emissions due to transportation.