Abstract
Emissions reduction and efficient energy utilization have always been important issues in the automotive industry, and they have grown in significance with the increasing demand for mobility around the world and its impact on the global environment. Powertrain improvements over the past several decades have reduced vehicle tailpipe emissions of harmful (criteria) pollutants to exceptionally low levels. However, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, unlike criteria pollutants, remain highly correlated with fuel use and have become the new focal point in assessing environmental impact. Partial or full electrification of propulsion systems, while reducing or eliminating tailpipe emissions, can also play a significant role in reducing fuel cycle well-to-wheels GHG emissions. The authors used a sampling of Chevy Volt data to investigate the real-world behavior of customers and explore the implications for petroleum displacement, tailpipe emissions reduction, and GHG emissions reduction. Key data sampled included miles driven, charging behavior, and the electricity / gasoline fuel mix. Real-world data were found to differ significantly from prior analytical projections, possibly due to a high degree of customer “self-selection” (customers successfully selecting the vehicle that best fits their driving needs). The percent of customer miles driven using plug-in electric energy (as opposed to gasoline energy) in the sampled data was significantly higher than projected, with positive implications for petroleum displacement and emissions reduction.
KEYWORDS Chevy Volt, Extended Range Electric Vehicle, Petroleum Displacement, Criteria Pollutant Emissions Reduction, Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction