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PUBLISHED ONLINE: 6 DECEMBER 2016|http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2016.237
Web End =DOI: 10.1038/NNANO.2016.237
Nanotechnology for environmentally sustainable electromobility
Linda Ager-Wick Ellingsen1*, Christine Roxanne Hung1, Guillaume Majeau-Bettez1,2, Bhawna Singh1, Zhongwei Chen3, M.Stanley Whittingham4 and Anders Hammer Strmman1
Anthropogenic greenhouse gas emission rates increased by more than 80% from 1970 to 20101, and emissions from the transport sector increased at a faster rate than any other
energy end-use sector2. In 2010, transportation was responsible for 23% of total energy-related CO2 emissions2, with total energy consumption reaching 27% of the total end-use energy, of which about half was consumed by light-duty vehicles2. There is currently an estimated one billion light-duty vehicles worldwide, and as a result of increasing standards of living and economic activity, this number is expected to double by 20353, with obvious repercussions for energy security, climate change and urban air quality.
Vehicles with electric powertrains are seen as attractive alternatives to conventional internal combustion engine vehicles2, and many governments have introduced policies promoting market uptake of EVs4,5. With the increasing market for EVs, most major automobile manufacturers now have one or more EVs in their production line. The signicant drop in the cost of LIBs over the past decade will further accelerate the adoption of EVs6.
When combined with clean energy sources, EVs can oer a range of advantages over conventional vehicles, such as reduced greenhouse gas emissions and local air pollution7,8 and improved energy efficiency9. However, a shi in drivetrain technology to LIBs and PEMFCs leads to changes in supply chains, introducing more environmentally intensive materials and production processes in exchange for potentially lower operating emissions10. To understand the environmental implications arising from transport electrication therefore requires a systems perspective, such as that provided by life-cycle assessment (LCA). LCA oers a way to quantify environmental impacts associated with the production, use and waste handling of goods and services11 (Box1).
Due to the unique electrical and mechanical properties only attainable at the nanoscale, nanostructured materials developed for LIBs and PEMFCs may signicantly improve their performance. Nanomaterials can notably oer advantages over bulk-structured materials through reduced diusion lengths of ions and electrons,
Electric vehicles (EVs) powered by lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) or proton exchange membrane hydrogen fuel cells (PEMFCs) oer important potential climate change mitigation eects when combined...