Vehicle Emissions and Life Cycle Analysis Models of Gasoline and Electric Vehicles

In addition to air pollution emissions, the transportation sector in the US is responsible for more than 25% of greenhouse gas emissions. Due to the negative impacts of these emissions, primarily on health and the environment, literature of vehicle emissions models is rich. Yet, attempts to synthesize and contrast models of this rich literature are scarce. Contrasting models of gasoline and electric vehicle emissions could be particularly beneficial due to the significant differences between these two technologies; specifically with respect to emissions. Accordingly, this paper adopts a life cycle analysis approach to synthesize and explore the development and structure of some of the most common emissions models. The paper starts with a brief discussion of the emission models measurement techniques; then, explores and contrasts state-of-the-art vehicle emissions models. Four groups of emissions models are included in this synthesis: 1) Macro-scale models: MOVES2014 and EMFAC; 2) Meso-scale models: VT-Meso, MOVES2014, and MEASURE; 3) Micro-scale models: VT-Micro and CMEM; and 4) Electric lifecycle models: MOVES2014 and GREET. The paper highlights the effects of lifecycle analyses of both gasoline and electric vehicles on estimates of vehicle greenhouse gas emissions from each of these two technologies. The paper ends with a discussion of the shortcomings of current vehicle emissions models, limitations of their usage and application, and suggestions for future work.