Roy Cuenca

LIFE-CYCLE ENERGY SAVINGS POTENTIAL FROM ALUMINUM-INTENSIVE VEHICLES.

The life-cycle energy and fuel-use impacts of US-produced aluminum-intensive passenger cars and passenger trucks are assessed. The energy analysis includes vehicle fuel consumption, material production energy, and recycling energy. A model that stimulates market dynamics was used to project aluminum-intensive vehicle market shares and national energy savings potential for the period between 2005 and 2030. We conclude that there is a net energy savings with the use of aluminum-intensive vehicles. Manufacturing costs must be reduced to achieve significant market penetration of aluminum-intensive vehicles. The petroleum energy saved from improved fuel efficiency offsets the additional energy needed to manufacture aluminum compared to steel. The energy needed to make aluminum can be reduced further if wrought aluminum is recycled back to wrought aluminum. We find that oil use is displaced by additional use of natural gas and nonfossil energy, but use of coal is lower. Many of the results are not necessarily applicable to vehicles built outside of the United States, but others could be used with caution.

Scenario analysis of hybrid class 3-7 heavy vehicles.

The effects of hybridization on heavy-duty vehicles are not well understood. Heavy vehicles represent a broader range of applications than light-duty vehicles, resulting in a wide variety of chassis and engine combinations, as well as diverse driving conditions. Thus, the strategies, incremental costs, and energy/emission benefits associated with hybridizing heavy vehicles could differ significantly from those for passenger cars. Using a modal energy and emissions model, they quantify the potential energy savings of hybridizing commercial Class 3-7 heavy vehicles, analyze hybrid configuration scenarios, and estimate the associated investment cost and payback time. From the analysis, they conclude that (1) hybridization can significantly reduce energy consumption of Class 3-7 heavy vehicles under urban driving conditions; (2) the grid-independent, conventional vehicle (CV)-like hybrid is more cost-effective than the grid-dependent, electric vehicle (EV)-like hybrid, and the parallel configuration is more cost-effective than the series configuration; (3) for CV-like hybridization, the on-board engine can be significantly downsized, with a gasoline or diesel engine used for SUVs perhaps being a good candidate for an on-board engine; (4) over the long term, the incremental cost of a CV-like, parallel-configured Class 3-4 hybrid heavy vehicle is about %5,800 in the year 2005 and

Operation of an Aluminum-Intensive Vehicle: Report on a Six-Year Project

3,000 in 2020, while for a Class 6-7 truck, it is about

From Here to Efficiency: Time Lags Between Introduction of New Technology and Achievement of Fuel Savings

7,100 in 2005 and

Another Way To Go?: Some Implications of Light-duty Diesel Strategy

3,300 in 2020; and (5) investment payback time, which depends on the specific type and application of the vehicle, averages about 6 years under urban driving conditions in 2005 and 2--3 years in 2020.

Lightweight materials in the light-duty passenger vehicle market: Their market penetration potential and impacts

In 1994, Ford produced a small demonstration fleet of Mercury Sables with aluminum bodies. Argonne National Laboratory obtained one of these vehicles on a lease so that Laboratory staff could observe the wear characteristics of the body under normal operating conditions. The vehicle was placed in the transportation pool, parked outdoors, and used by staff members for both local and longer trips. The vehicle performed normally, except for having particularly good acceleration because of its light weight and highpower SHO engine. No significant problems were encountered that related to the Al body or engine. No special driving protocols were observed, but a log was kept of trip lengths and fuel purchases. Fuel economy was observed to be improved, compared with that of a similar conventional steel-bodied vehicle that was available for one year of the lease period. The vehicle was tested on a chassis dynamometer to obtain emissions and fuel economy over the federal test cycle. The impacts of further mass reduction were also simulated. At the end of the lease, the body was in excellent condition, which we documented with a set of detailed photographs before the vehicle was returned to Ford. There were minor imperfections in the painted surface, probably resulting from the omission of an E-coat during the painting process. We also examined three similar conventional vehicles for comparison; these exhibited varying degrees of rust.

Lifecycle Analysis for Freight Transport

The energy savings of new technology offering significant improvements in fuel efficiency are tracked for more than 20 years as vehicles incorporating that technology enter the fleet and replace conventional lightduty vehicles. Two separate analyses are discussed: a life-cycle analysis of aluminum-intensive vehicles and a fuel-cycle analysis of the energy and greenhouse gas emissions of double versus triple fuel-economy vehicles. In both efforts, market-penetration modeling is used to simulate the rate at which new technology enters the new fleet, and stock-adjustment modeling is used to capture the inertia in turnover of new and existing current-technology vehicles. Together, these two effects—slowed market penetration and delayed vehicle replacement—increase the time lag between market introduction and the achievement of substantial energy savings. In both cases, 15 to 20 years elapse before savings approach these levels.

AN ASSESSMENT OF ELECTRIC VEHICLE LIFE CYCLE COSTS TO CONSUMERS

Conventional wisdom suggests that a large-scale shift from gasoline to diesel light-duty highway vehicles would have an impact on energy consumption, emissions, and infrastructure. Under a relatively modest scenario, based on French experience since 1970, a dieselization strategy could have displaced slightly more than half a quad of petroleum (3.7 percent of the energy consumed by light-duty vehicles) in 1992, while reducing carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbon (HC), and nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions by 6.3, 0.8, and 0.09 million tonnes, and increasing sulfur oxides (SOx) and particulates (PM-10) by 0.03 and 0.2 million tonnes, respectively. As a percentage of pollutants attributable to light-duty vehicles, these values represent decreases of 11 percent, 10 percent, and 2 percent for CO, HC, and NOx and increases of SOx and PM-10 of 36 percent and 39 percent, respectively. The projected oil displacement and emissions impacts would have been achieved by using a diesel technology that is significantly less efficient than what is currently available and what may become available as a result of current research. Energy consumed in refining would also have been marginally reduced, although additional processing could have been required to increase the fraction of distillate and decrease that of gasoline. Finally, a shift to diesel could have broad implications on U.S. and world oil markets, modifying crude oil supply-demand balances and requiring a different mix of unit operations in domestic refineries that, in turn, could change the capital investment path of the industry, which is currently geared to maximizing gasoline production.