AUTONEWS

e-fuels: who knew...they pollute 5 times more than electric vehicles

At the request of some German manufacturers, notably Porsche, Germany forced the European Union to change the pre-established rules, accepting that cars equipped with conventional combustion engines would be equated to electric vehicles from 2035, as long as they burned. exclusively e-fuels. The reference is specific to synthetic fuels produced with carbon captured in the atmosphere and green hydrogen, produced through the electrolysis of water.

Now, the oil lobby and the few manufacturers who wanted to force e-fuels – exclusively because this allows them to reduce investments and increase profits – want the EU to relax the original rule even further, accepting not-so-green synthetic fuels, such as for example those generated with hydrogen and carbon extracted from methane. According to Transport & Environment, this would allow e-fuels to pollute five times more than electric vehicles, if we exclusively considered carbon dioxide emissions from well to wheel, that is, throughout the entire cycle, from production to the use of fuel, including transport, be it gasoline or electricity.

It is estimated that, in 2035, a battery electric vehicle that recharges while connected to the European grid will emit, on average, just 13 g of CO2/km, always considering the well-to-wheel cycle. If the EU decides to relax the level of requirements and allow e-fuels produced in an unsustainable way, this synthetic fuel would start to emit 61 g of CO2/km, which implies an increase of almost five times (4.7 to be more precise ) in the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere. But the oil lobby, instead of worrying about the fact that CO2 emissions could increase by 79% with non-renewable e-fuels, prefers to focus on the 70% gain over conventional gasoline, resulting from oil refining.

Giving in to pressure from the German Government, admitting renewable e-fuels, was a serious mistake, since these e-fuels can be carbon neutral – in practice, burning the fuel releases carbon into the atmosphere that had previously been captured. – but this does not prevent them from emitting CO2, and does not contribute to reducing the excess of this gas in the atmosphere. In addition to returning CO2 to the air, e-fuels also emit NOx (nitrogen oxides), which are undoubtedly carcinogenic, to which sulfur and particles are added, as in any combustion engine.

If the EU gives in to pressure again, allowing e-fuels produced in a less environmentally friendly way, exclusively to be cheaper, the damage to the environment and health will increase even further, especially for those who live in large cities.

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