Document Type

Data Set

Publication Date

Winter 2024

Abstract

Compared to gasoline/diesel cars and battery electric cars (BECs), hydrogen fuel cell cars (HFCCs) are relatively new. Two main advantages of HFCCs over electric vehicles are no special requirements for heavy batteries and long charging time. There is no HFCC in Texas; thus, exploring the use of electricity or hydrogen produced from renewable energies for personal cars and mitigating vehicle emissions is critical for sustaining a long-term decarburization strategy for megacities like Houston and Dallas. This project addressed this critical gap and developed environmental impacts and cost assessments for hybrid gasoline cars, BECs, and HFCCs in Texas under several possible energy scenarios: BECs with Texas electricity mix, hydrogen production via natural gas reforming, from biomass via pyrolysis and dark fermentation, via water electrolysis with renewable energies including solar and wind power, from now to 2040 using some tools of lifecycle assessment (LCA) and lifecycle cost analysis (LCCA). The carbon footprint of BECs and HFCCs was determined with respect to the transport, logistics, and supply chain sectors. A new lifecycle cost model for BECs and HFCCs was designed considering some uncertainties of renewable resources. We found that the lifecycle GHG emissions of HFCCs powered with hydrogen produced by conventional water electrolysis are higher than those of hybrid gasoline cars and that the current price of green hydrogen is much higher than grey hydrogen. It is not valuable to possess personal HFCCs in Texas based on the current prices of HFCCs and hydrogen in Texas. Faculty working on this research integrated LCA as an important focus area for all senior and graduate-level civil and environmental engineering courses. These students were introduced to the techniques of well-to-wheel analysis and production cost evaluation for renewable energy-powered vehicles.

Comments

Tran-SET Project 22ITSPVAMU55

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