Sustainable energy & transport ... the urgent need of the hour!
What's the buzz all about?
There is a lot of buzz around the term "sustainability" these days. Every other company now talks about how they have prioritized ESG goals along with a focus on business growth.
One of the main reasons for a new-found interest in sustainability/ decarbonization/ energy efficiency is the accelerated pace of global warming, which has made the effects of climate change considerably conspicuous, with multitude of anomalies in weather patterns across the globe.
According to NASA's Global Climate Change portal:
Earth’s global average surface temperature in 2020 statistically tied with 2016 as the hottest year on record, continuing a long-term warming trend due to human activities.
The exhibit - A shows the change in global surface temperature compared to long term average.
 |
| Exhibit - A : Change in global surface temperature compared to the long term average (from 1951 to 1980) |
It is evident that the earth is getting warmer with each passing year and hence, Governments, Corporates and associations around the world are scrambling to find ways to control and hopefully reverse the effects of climate change.
Why is this happening?
One of the key reasons for such a rapid change is the way we humans use energy. The global population has already crossed the figure of 8 billion (Worldometers).
With rapid urbanization and growth of cities across the world, the global energy consumption is at an all time high (~ 177,000 TWh in 2021 - as per this data).
The major source for this energy is derived from fossil fuels such as coal, oil & gas.. all of which are non-renewable sources of energy. According to IEA, Oil, coal and natural gas accounted for ~ 70% of global total final consumption. The share of electricity is < 20%.
What can be done differently?
The way we consume energy is heavily dependent on the way the energy is produced. Before the advent of electricity, humans used fire (from wood/ oil/ coal etc.) for the purposes of heating, illumination, cooking etc.
With the industrial revolution and advancements in the generation, transmission & distribution of electricity, the world saw an explosion in the possibilities of electricity!
Oil lamps gave way to incandescent bulbs, CFLs and LEDs for illumination; induction hobs & microwave ovens changed the way people cook; motors & drives pretty much changed the face of earth with machines replacing manual efforts in all aspects of life; and now, we have AI, distributed systems (read: blockchain, NFTs, crypto) & quantum computing poised to bring in the next wave of disruptions!
Incidentally, even today, a large portion of the electricity generated comes from burning coal & gas (to produce steam, which eventually runs a steam turbine generator). However, there is a steady increase in the percentage of electricity generated by renewable energy sources such as Solar (PV/ CSP), wind, biomass, ocean thermal, tidal, geothermal etc.
As per Ourworldindata, the share of renewables in electricity production is ~ 28% as of 2021!
As per the law of universe, energy can neither be created nor destroyed... it can only be converted from one form to another. Which is where electricity has gained prominence due to its flexibility in conversion, transmission & now even storage.
Everything in the modern world depends on electricity... except road transport (in most of the countries). Although public transport modes such as trains have shifted to electricity as their source of energy for traction, road transport sector is still in the early stages of transition to electrification.
How will electrification of road - transportation sector help?
A significant amount of fossil fuel (gasoline, petrol, diesel, compressed natural gas) is used in the road transportation sector.
The public road transport vehicles (buses, trucks) and personal vehicles & light commercial vehicles (cars, vans, MUVs) carry millions of passengers on a daily basis by burning oil in the Internal Combustion Engines (ICEs), thereby directly emitting greenhouse gases from tailpipes. This leads to two things, namely i) Ineffcient conversion of energy by use of fossil fuels and ii) Direct release of pollutants & GHGs in the urban centers (posing risk of bad air quality for the human population).
As such, the transition of ICE vehicles to EV has become inevitable.
It is noteworthy to mention here that EVs were invented way back in the late 1800s! The world's first electrically operated street car was developed by Siemens in Berlin!
 |
| Exhibit - C: Electric Streetcar - Stories - Global (siemens.com) |
Ater more than 140 years, the world is witnessing a phenomenal shift towards electric vehicles for road transportation. Almost all the global automakers have launched electric versions of their buses, cars, bikes and trucks and most of them have even declared that they will stop the production of Internal Combustion Engine based vehicles in the coming years.
This has happened due to technology advancements in three pillars of the EV ecosystem, namely i) Advanced chemistry batteries, ii) Motors & inverters for traction & iii) Power electronics for efficient energy transfer (AC-DC/ DC-DC/ DC-AC).
According an analysis by MIT, EVs have been shown to reduce energy consumption by up to
50% and GHG emissions by up to 60% (source, MIT) .
What next?
The shift to a sustainable world, where climate change can be reversed, requires a shift in our mindset. We all need to be mindful of how each act of ours affects the climate at large.
Governments can prioritize the shift of public transportation to electric vehicles by providing financing/ subsidies for quick transition. Electrcity generation should be shifted to renewable sources asap.
Individuals can minimize usage ICE vehicles and transition to electric vehicles and also find ways of using more renewable energy sources for daily needs (Eg: rooftop solar.)
And last but not the least, we should inculcate the feeling of gratitude towards earth and mother nature and do our bit by planting more trees, not wasting energy (electricity/ food/ oil etc).
Author: Bidyut Mazumder
Contact: bidyut123@gmail.com
Comments