How Trucks Are Being Decarbonised
Dec 19, 2023 7:01 am
How Trucks Are Being Decarbonised
3 min read
In Europe, trucks and buses make up 2% of vehicles on the roads but are responsible for 25% of emissions. It is for reasons like these that the EU has set a goal requiring most new trucks to cut their emissions by 45% in 2030, 65% in 2035, and 90% in 2040.
Although this goal might seem daunting, it can be achieved in many ways, mostly electrifying trucks and fuelling them with hydrogen.
Battery electric trucks have been thought of as one of the most logical solutions to this problem, given the success of light motor electric vehicles.
Challenges With Fully Electric Trucks
- Batteries are expensive – electric trucks can cost up to 50% more than diesel trucks. This is largely due to the high cost of batteries.
- Batteries are heavy – trucks are allowed to weigh up to 36 tonnes, with the batteries taking up a fourth of that weight. According to experts, an electric long-distance truck can weigh up to 2.4 tonnes more than the equivalent diesel truck.
- Batteries are too big – the previous stat translates into 2.4 tonnes less cargo on the truck. That lost space is equivalent to 17 000 t-shirts, 16 000 apples, or one full car.
- Limited range – diesel trucks can travel more than four times the distance on a single tank that electric trucks can on a single charge.
Fuel cells work like batteries that run on stored hydrogen and oxygen from the air. One fuel cell can produce enough electricity to power a truck for 1 000 km. The only biproducts are heat and water and it takes less than 15 minutes to refuel. Hydrogen trucks can emit up to 89% less CO2 than diesel trucks while still keeping the same amount of cargo space and not having to stop for long periods of time to refuel.
Challenges with fuel cell trucks
- It takes a large amount of energy to produce pure hydrogen.
- Most hydrogen is not produced with renewable energy, reducing the pollution benefit of using hydrogen as a fuel.
- Insufficient number of refuelling stations.
- Producing hydrogen fuel is a complicated process, with nearly 60% of energy being lost during the hydrogen conversion process while only 20% is lost for the electric trucks. That requires 3 times more energy upfront for the hydrogen fuel cells than for the electric trucks.
The method for battery electric trucks
Lithium-ion batteries, which are used in electric vehicles, are becoming increasingly cheaper, with prices decreasing 75% in the past 10 years. The energy density of batteries has also improved. This means that trucks can get more range out of the same sized batteries.
Another solution being worked on is Megawatt Charging Systems – higher voltage charging stations for heavy-duty electric trucks which could reduce charging time from several hours to as low as 15 minutes. Truck drivers would then be able to charge trucks during their mandated driving breaks.
Electric trucks are favourable due to the charging infrastructure and battery technology which is already in place for consumer EVs. South Africa currently has over 400 electric car charging stations. Although these are made to service light motor vehicles, charging ports and extra batteries can simply be added to accommodate trucks. However, there is only one hydrogen refuelling station operating in South Africa.
Process involved in powering a fuel cell
- Turn green electricity into hydrogen.
- Transport that hydrogen to a refuelling station.
- Pump it into a fuel cell.
- Fuel cell turns hydrogen back into electricity, which powers the truck.
Process involved in powering an electric truck
- Electricity is used to charge the battery inside the truck.
- Battery is used to power truck.
Manufacturers such as Daimler (Mercedes-Benz parent company) and Volvo are using hydrogen fuel cell trucks along with battery electric trucks. This is because battery electric trucks might never be able to carry as much cargo as hydrogen fuel cells while hydrogen fuel cells might never have the refuelling infrastructure of battery electric trucks.
Possible solutions
- Truck drivers can swop out batteries instead of having to recharge them.
- Install electric road systems that could charge trucks while they drive.
- Europe has goals to set up charging stations dedicated to heavy-duty vehicles with a minimum output of 350 kW every 60 km along every 100 km of their TEN-T core network between 2025 and 2030.
- Europe also has goals to set up hydrogen refuelling infrastructure every 200 km along the TEN-T core network and in urban areas from 2030 onwards.
- EU has imposed a regulation that will require new heavy-duty vehicles to reduce their CO2 emissions by 90% by 2040.
A lot is being proposed to decarbonise trucks, but we will need to do a lot more a lot quicker to solve the problem.
What do you think of electric and hydrogen trucks? Do you think that they will be a viable solution from 2030 onwards? Share your thoughts by replying to this email.
For more information on new energy vehicles, or any other renewable energy related articles, view the other blog posts on my website and be sure to open my weekly emails every Tuesday at 9AM CAT. Please also share this newsletter with your friends and collogues working in the renewable energy sector.
Interesting Updates
Unilever accused of greenwashing
Ghanaian engineering students build electric vehicle
Solar bike paths go online in Netherlands – pv magazine International (pv-magazine.com)
