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Title: Transformative Reduction of Transportation Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Opportunities for Change in Technologies and Systems

Abstract

The transportation sector is changing, influenced by concurrent, ongoing, dynamic trends that could dramatically affect the future energy landscape, including effects on the potential for greenhouse gas emissions reductions. Battery cost reductions and improved performance coupled with a growing number of electric vehicle model offerings are enabling greater battery electric vehicle market penetration, and advances in fuel cell technology and decreases in hydrogen production costs are leading to initial fuel cell vehicle offerings. Radically more efficient vehicles based on both conventional and new drivetrain technologies reduce greenhouse gas emissions per vehicle-mile. Net impacts also depend on the energy sources used for propulsion, and these are changing with increased use of renewable energy and unconventional fossil fuel resources. Connected and automated vehicles are emerging for personal and freight transportation systems and could increase use of low- or non-emitting technologies and systems; however, the net effects of automation on greenhouse gas emissions are uncertain. The longstanding trend of an annual increase in transportation demand has reversed for personal vehicle miles traveled in recent years, demonstrating the possibility of lower-travel future scenarios. Finally, advanced biofuel pathways have continued to develop, highlighting low-carbon and in some cases carbon-negative fuel pathways. We discuss the potentialmore » for transformative reductions in petroleum use and greenhouse gas emissions through these emerging transportation-sector technologies and trends and present a Clean Transportation Sector Initiative scenario for such reductions, which are summarized in Table ES-1.« less

Authors:
 [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [2]
  1. National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
  2. U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C. (United States)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C. (United States)
OSTI Identifier:
1215028
Report Number(s):
NREL/TP-5400-62943
DOE Contract Number:  
AC36-08GO28308
Resource Type:
Technical Report
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; GREENHOUSE GAS MITIGATION; TRANSPORTATION ENERGY USE; ELECTRIC VEHICLES; AUTOMATION; VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED; BIOFUELS; ROADWAY ELECTRIFICATION

Citation Formats

Vimmerstedt, Laura, Brown, Austin, Newes, Emily, Markel, Tony, Schroeder, Alex, Zhang, Yimin, Chipman, Peter, and Johnson, Shawn. Transformative Reduction of Transportation Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Opportunities for Change in Technologies and Systems. United States: N. p., 2015. Web. doi:10.2172/1215028.
Vimmerstedt, Laura, Brown, Austin, Newes, Emily, Markel, Tony, Schroeder, Alex, Zhang, Yimin, Chipman, Peter, & Johnson, Shawn. Transformative Reduction of Transportation Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Opportunities for Change in Technologies and Systems. United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1215028
Vimmerstedt, Laura, Brown, Austin, Newes, Emily, Markel, Tony, Schroeder, Alex, Zhang, Yimin, Chipman, Peter, and Johnson, Shawn. 2015. "Transformative Reduction of Transportation Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Opportunities for Change in Technologies and Systems". United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1215028. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1215028.
@article{osti_1215028,
title = {Transformative Reduction of Transportation Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Opportunities for Change in Technologies and Systems},
author = {Vimmerstedt, Laura and Brown, Austin and Newes, Emily and Markel, Tony and Schroeder, Alex and Zhang, Yimin and Chipman, Peter and Johnson, Shawn},
abstractNote = {The transportation sector is changing, influenced by concurrent, ongoing, dynamic trends that could dramatically affect the future energy landscape, including effects on the potential for greenhouse gas emissions reductions. Battery cost reductions and improved performance coupled with a growing number of electric vehicle model offerings are enabling greater battery electric vehicle market penetration, and advances in fuel cell technology and decreases in hydrogen production costs are leading to initial fuel cell vehicle offerings. Radically more efficient vehicles based on both conventional and new drivetrain technologies reduce greenhouse gas emissions per vehicle-mile. Net impacts also depend on the energy sources used for propulsion, and these are changing with increased use of renewable energy and unconventional fossil fuel resources. Connected and automated vehicles are emerging for personal and freight transportation systems and could increase use of low- or non-emitting technologies and systems; however, the net effects of automation on greenhouse gas emissions are uncertain. The longstanding trend of an annual increase in transportation demand has reversed for personal vehicle miles traveled in recent years, demonstrating the possibility of lower-travel future scenarios. Finally, advanced biofuel pathways have continued to develop, highlighting low-carbon and in some cases carbon-negative fuel pathways. We discuss the potential for transformative reductions in petroleum use and greenhouse gas emissions through these emerging transportation-sector technologies and trends and present a Clean Transportation Sector Initiative scenario for such reductions, which are summarized in Table ES-1.},
doi = {10.2172/1215028},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1215028}, journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 EDT 2015},
month = {Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 EDT 2015}
}