"Electric Cars Will Not Tackle Air Polution"

[dpeilow]

This is another one of those whack-a-rat stories that will not go away.


Last year there were reports of electric vehicles causing higher particulate matter that ICE, based on the false assumption that because some models are heavier, they must cause higher tyre and brake pad wear. It ignored all other factors such as regen not requiring as much use of the friction brakes and smoother power delivery and eco tyres not wearing the rubber out as quickly. For example, my Ampera is still on original rear tyres and all four pads at 60,000 miles.

It was quickly discovered that the original paper was written by an undergraduate engineering student, aided by a Dutch consultancy with interests in components for ICEs and conventional hybrids. It was deeply flawed. The student's institution, the University of Edinburgh, has disowned the paper, as can be seen here:

However this did not stop the story resurfacing again earlier this year in the magazine of the IET, nor again yesterday twice in the Guardian and BBC.

London should lead in showing electric cars will not tackle air pollution

Electric cars are not the answer to air pollution, says top UK adviser

Fewer cars not cleaner ones key to tackling air quality - BBC News


This time around it looks like a concerted effort by the anti-car brigade with multiple articles. If there is anything more sinister behind it, then it is a clever move to get the left on board with their cause. While encouraging more people onto public transport or to cycle is laudable, the timing of this seems like a counterattack from the 2040 announcement.


However, the main spokesman this time is Professor Frank Kelly of King's College London. What is worrying is that he chairs the government advisory committee on the medical effects of air pollutants - so this may just affect public policy.

His details can be found here:
King's College London - Professor Frank Kelly



While the source of this myth has been discredited as having a potential conflict of interest, I am intrigued as to why it has been picked up by a leading academic. Has anyone seen any other research that specifically shows a link between EVs and particulate matter? And does the professor have any interests outside of academia?

 

[scaesare]

I should send him my brake pads. I just turned over 100K miles and they look like new.

 

[dpeilow]

Hmm. No one willing to follow up on this one? Sounds like a job for @TEG

 

[TEG]

Uh oh, the red phone started ringing...

 

[TEG]

Bouncing around the Internet starting from DPeilow's links, I ended up on this document some people might find interesting:
https://www.healtheffects.org/sites/default/files/Lutsey.pdf

Not in a bad way though... So far all I have found seems to be reasonable looking reports and research, but I didn't dig very far.

 

[TEG]

The image link doesn't seem to work in the first post anymore. Here it is in case it is missing for anyone else:

By the way, the professor seems to be involved in a lot of things including this: Professor Frank Kelly - National Phenome Centre

 

[TEG]

Some of those stories quote this study:

http://publications.jrc.ec.europa.e.../JRC89231/jrc89231-online final version 2.pdf

Which seems to just generally say that tires and brakes put out bad particles regardless what powers the car.

 

[TEG]

Wow, that's a lot of research / grant money ! :
https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en...c0-ce6e-4d3b-914b-5adc28f9aee3)/projects.html

I particularly like this one:
Special Fund - Research Funding - Research Portal, King's College, London
The "Special fund"...
£130,775 from someone with no explanation...

 

[dpeilow]

Thanks TEG.

By the way, the outlet which first broke the story about the original, now disowned paper was The Times.

Eco-vehicles fill air with deadly toxins

Scientists have found electric, hybrid and other supposedly eco-friendly cars produce as much toxic particulate pollution as the “deadly diesels” they are meant to be replacing.

The tiny particles are produced by tyre and brake wear. This happens in all cars, including diesel and petrol, but eco-vehicles produce more because they are heavier, owing to the batteries and other parts needed to propel them. The extra emissions are roughly equal to the particulates saved by reduced engine use.

The added weight of eco-cars means that when they accelerate or slow down, the tyres and brakes wear faster, producing more particulates. The weight also whips up more particles from the road surface.

“We found that non-exhaust emissions, from brakes, tyres and the road, are far larger than exhaust emissions in all modern cars,” said Peter Achten, whose research is published in the journal Atmospheric Environment.

“These are more toxic than emissions from modern engines so they are likely to be key factors in the extra heart attacks, strokes and asthma attacks seen when air pollution levels surge.”

Achten, who runs a scientific consultancy in Holland, and his co-author Victor Timmers, of Edinburgh University, used technical data from the motor industry and government research agencies, including direct tests of brake, tyre and road wear rates, to show that the non-exhaust emissions produced by a vehicle are directly related to its weight. They also built a database of vehicle weights.

“We found that electric and eco-friendly cars typically weigh 24% more than conventional cars,” said Achten.

The findings fit with anecdotal complaints from electric and hybrid car owners that their tyres wear out faster than on conventional vehicles.

The impact of non-exhaust emissions has long been suspected but is hard to measure. Scientists at Hertfordshire University overcame this problem by installing particulate air pollution monitors in the southbound Hatfield tunnel on the A1(M), which carries up to 49,000 vehicles a day.

They found each vehicle produced 34-39 micrograms of particles per kilometre but only a third came from the engine.

The rest comprised mainly tiny pieces of bitumen whipped up from the road, rubber from tyres and brake dust. In towns — where cars brake and accelerate more often — this proportion may reach 90%.

Such findings are a problem for policy-makers whose anti-pollution efforts have been focused on regulating engines. Professor Ranjeet Sokhi, of Hertfordshire University, who led the study, said: “This highlights the significance of non-exhaust emissions and a need for legislation.”

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said the industry was working to make eco-friendly cars lighter. “Such vehicles have zero or ultra-low tailpipe emissions and have energy recovery systems, which limit the need for active braking, reducing brake and tyre friction that may contribute to particulate emissions.”

Toyota, a market leader in hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fuel-cell cars, said the firm had no data on particulate emissions from brakes and tyres but added: “An advantage of hybrid cars over diesel is that nitrogen dioxide and hydrocarbon emissions are incomparably better.”

Frank Kelly, professor of environmental health at King’s College London, said one hope lay in changing the composition of tyres and road surfaces. “Non-exhaust PM [particulate matter] emissions are greater than exhaust and we do not have regulations to deal with these emissions.”

A Department for Transport spokesman said eco-vehicles still had huge benefits in cutting CO2 emissions.

@jonathan__leake

 

[William13]

@dpeilow, I read the article months or years ago that the Times references. The fallacy was that the study measured Particulates stirred up from the road by passing cars, not the Particulates caused by passing cars. These Particulates don't go too far.

 

[*KT*]

I'm going to give Frank Kelly the benefit of the doubt for now that what he was possibly trying to say was 'yes it is good to reduce all air particulates, exhaust and non-exhaust. We have regulations to reduce exhaust emissions and we do not have regulations to reduce non exhaust emissions and we should".

exhaust pollution was a big factor in me deciding to buy BEV. I am since enlightened on particulate pollution as well so i practice one pedal driving as much as possible to reduce braking and hence brake dust. Compared to my previous car, this car generates little to no discernible brake dust for which i am very happy. Now to work on the tyre wear, keep my psi at recommended levels (have a hand compressor for this reason) and i am comfortable i am doing my bit to reduce particulate air contamination as much as possible while driving a car.

While i wait for the rest of society to catch up, i am glad for my HEPA filter when i am driving behind a car visibily belching black smoke out its exhaust.