Why is it so hard to be environmentally friendly these days? For years, we’ve been told that gasoline-fueled vehicles were damaging our planet. They pollute our air, consume copious amounts of energy and are one of the leading forces driving global warming.
So, a solution was needed direly, and that’s where the electric vehicles (EV) came into play. Truth be told, this was never a new idea as the very first EV was crudely developed back in 1832 by Robert Anderson.
In the United States, the first successful vehicle wasn’t created until the late 1800s. While it was compared to nothing more than an electric wagon, it still sparked quite the interest in the industry. Eventually, electric cars became more popular than gas and steam-powered vehicles because they were easy to drive, didn’t make a racket and didn’t stink up the air.
By the turn of the century, it was estimated that a third of the cars being used were electric. So, what changed?
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The Decline of EVs
Well, funny thing. At the turn of the century, people still used horses as their primary mode of transportation. So, why create a machine to imitate horsepower when you have the real thing eating hay in your barn?
But, as the years continued, as society continued to become more and more advanced, the introduction of the motor vehicle started to raise eyebrows across North America. These automobiles came in three different flavours: steam, gasoline and, of course, electric.
While reliable for the time, steam wasn’t efficient as it required long start-up times and limited range due to water refills. This is where electric and gasoline-powered vehicles came into play.
While you may think gasoline-powered vehicles were just more practical than EVs, you’d be wildly incorrect.
While gasoline vehicles were a significant improvement over steam, they still came with a list of faults. The most pressing issue was that they were difficult to operate as changing gears was no easy task. Not to mention, they were also incredibly noisy.
Electric cars had none of these issues. They were easy to control, quiet as a mouse, and didn’t expel any disgusting pollutants. They even handled poor road conditions better than both gasoline and steam vehicles.
EVs were so popular around this time that the demand was catching the attention of many innovative inventors. Around 1898, Ferdinand Porsche (Guess what he’s known for) developed an electric car called the P1 and the first hybrid car that could be powered by both electricity and a gas engine. Even Henry Ford, partnered with Thomas Edison, explored options for a lower-cost electric car.
However, this partnership led to the mass-produced Model T in 1908 that dug the grave of the electric car. These cars were widely made available and affordable. By 1912, the gasoline car only cost $650 against an EV price tag of $1,750. Also, around the same time, Charles Kettering perfected the electric starter, eliminating the need for a hand crank for gasoline-powered vehicles and raising sales.
Other elements contributed to the decline of electric vehicles. For one, the U.S started building a more efficient road system connecting cities, allowing drivers to explore more. There was also the discovery of crude oil in Texas, making gas cheaper and allowing more filling up stations popping up across the nation.
All of this forced the electric vehicles into obscurity… but no forever.
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The Resurrection of EVs
For the next few decades, electric vehicles continued to stay off the auto industry’s radar until the late 60s and early 70s. Oil prices were soaring due to gasoline shortages, forcing the U.S to lower its dependence on foreign oil and find local sources of fuel. This led to Congress passing the “Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Research, Development, and Demonstration Act of 1976,” authorizing more resources in research and development in electric and hybrid vehicles.
This motivated automakers, both big and small, to begin exploring their options for this new development. For example, the American Motor Company produced electric delivery jeeps that the U.S Postal Service used in a 1975 test program. General Motors also created a prototype of an urban electric vehicle.
Even NASA grew interested in alternative fuel options when their electric Lunar rover became the first human-crewed vehicle to drive on the moon in 1971.
However, despite this comeback, electric vehicles still couldn’t match the specs of gasoline-powered cars, with limited performance in speed and range. Back then, you could only go 40 miles before needing to recharge and only go as fast as 45mph. You wouldn’t even be able to travel outside the countryside with today’s speeding laws!
So, the days of slow speeds and low performance were a thing of the past for EVs. However, when Congress passed the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendment and the 1992 Energy Policy Act, along with new emission regulations, the EV market renewed some new interest. This encouraged automakers to modify their inventory into electric vehicles.
While electric vehicles were still not getting the average consumer’s attention, engineers were still working to improve the technology, including the battery power.
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But Are EVs Really That Green?
Well… this is where things tend to get a little complicated.
The initial idea behind electric vehicles was to offer an alternative fuel solution that wasn’t as harmful to the environment as fossil fuels. For the most part, EVs accomplished this.
In gasoline-powered cars, kinetic energy is stored in chemical form and then released through a reaction inside the engine. Electric vehicles do not have this problem as they release it electrochemically with the help of lithium-ion batteries. Therefore, we don’t burn fuel and pollute the environment as we drive.
So, that should be a win for the green side of the auto industry, right?
Well, remember… this is where things get a little complicated. While the actual car itself may be greener for the environment, the source of the electricity is not. According to reports, some EV batteries today can have 10 times more power than what an average household uses in one day. That a lot of electricity!
While batteries in these vehicles are being charged at home, they’re attached to a grid with greenhouse emissions connected to them. So, the car might not be as clean as you initially thought.
For example, coal is probably the dirtiest way to generate electricity. Powering an EV this way is only slightly better than just driving a gas-powered car. Sure, it’s an improvement, but that’s like saying putting a bandage on a leaking dam is an improvement.
Other grids across North America are composed of diverse generating sources from hydro to nuclear and back to coal again. However, Canada is currently attempting to eliminate coal plants by 2030.
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Don’t Forget Where The Batteries Come From
Although electric cars themselves are better for the environment, the batteries themselves leave a significant carbon footprint.
Just the material alone to make the battery, nickel, cobalt and lithium; mining and processing these minerals involve substantial carbon emissions, and that doesn’t even include the manufacturing process.
The freshwater supply is being consumed by mines in South America’s lithium-rich region. Lithium mining has been extremely harmful to sea life, mass killing fish in Tibet. And this will only get worse in the next few years.
With lithium demand set to triple by 2025, mining and exploration around the globe will increase. But there also comes the point when these batteries deplete, and they have to end up somewhere.
According to a study from the International Council of Clean Transportation (ICCT), 99% of lead-acid batteries (those running fossil fuel-powered cars) are recycled in the United States. Unfortunately, that is not the case with lithium-ion batteries.
Back in 2011, only 5% of lithium was being collected. The rest was either incinerated or disposed of in landfills, which doesn’t help the “electric cars are greener” narrative. But, to be fair, that was 10 years ago.
As the years continue, more and more lithium-ion batteries are created, which creates more interest in the recycling process. According to a BBC article from this year, Dr. Paul Anderson from the University of Birmingham, those recycling numbers still haven’t improved.
“Currently, globally, it’s tough to get detailed figures for what percentage of lithium-ion batteries are recycled, but the value everyone quotes is about 5%. In some parts of the world, it’s considerably less.”
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Conclusion
It’s pretty much impossible to predict where electric vehicles will take the auto industry. The only thing that’s for sure is that they provide a lot of potential for a sustainable future.
Despite the process of EVs, these cars reduce our dependence on foreign oil by a large margin, like 30-60%, while also lowering carbon pollution from the transportation sector by 20%. Unfortunately, the before and after effects of EVs are pretty difficult to ignore.
It’s possible the problems from battery manufacturing, and recycling can improve over the years with better resources. Still, we probably said that back in 2011 too.
However, there are strides within the industry to improve the technology. For example, specific departments, including the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E), are investing in new types of batteries. These could possibly go further on a single charge to cost-effective alternatives to materials critical to electric motors.
So, while it’s hard to tell how far electric vehicles will make it down the road, it’ll be quite an intriguing ride.