Republic of the Philippines

MINDANAO STATE UNIVERSITY

9500, Fatima, General Santos City

1st Semester, A.Y. 2019-2020

THE EFFECTS OF ELECTRONIC CARS IN THE ENVIRONMENT

By:

JOSHUA R. SEVILLA

COLLEGE OF NATURAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS

IT/PHYSICS DEPARTMENT

PROF. JEFFREY P. ROMERO

NOVEMBER 2019
 The Effects of Electronic Cars in the Environment

As the years goes by, our way of living improved a lot. Including the advanced
technology that developed through time such as smart phones, robots, virtual reality,
and electronic vehicles. Everyday we ride in different vehicles going to school, work or
home. Electronic vehicles are now being used around the world to decrease the air
pollution. Electric vehicles or EV is an automobile that is propelled by one or more
electric motors, using energy stored in rechargeable batteries instead of an internal-
combustion engine that generates power by burning a mix of fuel and gasses. Electric
vehicles get their power from rechargeable batteries installed inside the car (Goodwin,
2019). These batteries are not only used for the functioning of lights and wipers. Electric
cars have more batteries than normal gasoline car. Its the same kind of batteries that
are commonly used when starting up a gasoline engine. The only difference comes in
the fact that in electric vehicle, they have more of them which are used to power engine.
Although some companies have based their entire model of cars around being proactive
using electricity, some also offer hybrid vehicles that work off both electricity and gas
(Concerned Scientist, 2018). An electronic car such as Nissan Leaf, Ford Focus Electric
or Tesla Model. In the early part of the century, innovators in Hungary, Netherlands and
United States including blacksmith from Vermont began toying with the concept of a
battery powered vehicle and created some of the first small scale electric cars. At the
same time Robert Anderson, a British inventor developed the first crude electric
carriage. It wasn’t until the second half of 19th century, the French and English inventors
built some of the first practical electric cars(Matulka R, 2014). The first successful
electric car was made in U.S. around 1890 by William Morrison, a chemist who lived in
Des Moines, lowa. Over the next few years, electric vehicles from different auto makers
began popping up across the U.S. New York City even had a rapid of more than 60
electric taxis. By 1900, electric cars were at their heyday, accounting for around a third
of all vehicles on the road. Many innovators entice to make electric cars due to the high
demand of it. For example, Ferdinand Porsche, founder of the sports car company and
the one who developed an electric car called P1 in 1898. Around the same time, he
created the worlds first hybrid car which is a vehicle that is powered by electricity and a
gas engine. During this time, automakers began modifying some of their popular vehicle
models into electric vehicles. This meant that electric vehicles now achieved speeds
and performance much closer to gasoline powered vehicles, and many of them had
range of 60 miles. One of the most well known electric cars during this time was GM’s
EV1, a car that was heavily featured in the 2006 documentary. Instead of modifying the
existing vehicle, GM designated and developed 80 miles and the ability to accelerate
from 0 to 50 miles per hour in just even seconds, the EV1 quickly gained a cult
following. But because of high production costs, the EV1 was never commercially viable
and GM discontinued it in 2001. The true revival of the electric vehicle didn’t happen
until around the start of the 21st century. Toyota Prius, released in Japan in 1997, the
Prius became the worlds first mass produced hybrid electric vehicle. In 2000, Prius was
released worldwide and it became an instant success with celebrities, helping to raise
the profile of the car. The other event that helped reshape electric vehicles was the
announcement in 2006 that a small silicon valley startup, Tesla motors, would start
producing luxury electric sports car that could go more than 200 miles on a single
charge. In 2010, Tesla received at $465 million loan from the Department of Energy’s
Loan Program Office to establish a manufacturing facility in California. In the short time
since then, Tesla has won wide acclaim for its cars and has become the largest auto
industry employer in California (Robertson M, 2004).

Many people got interested in electric cars because there are a number of great
benefits to electric cars over conventional gasoline cars. First of its benefits is that the
advantage of much lower running costs. Second is that it is to maintain because the
battery of the electric vehicles has a lot moving parts than a conventional gasoline car.
There is relatively little servicing and no expensive exhaust systems, starter motors, fuel
injection systems, and many other parts that are not needed in an electronic vehicles.
Batteries do wear out so replacement batteries will eventually be needed. Most car
manufacturers warrant electric vehicle batteries for around 8 years. Having an electric
vehicle is better for the environment because it can less pollution by helping to reduce
harmful air pollution from exhaust emissions. An electric vehicle has zero exhaust
emissions. Electric vehicles uses renewable energy to charge that reduces the
greenhouse gas emissions even further. Fueling with electricity offers some advantages
not available in conventional internal combustion engine vehicles. Because electric
motors react quickly, electric vehicles are very responsive and have a very good torque
(DeMuro D, 2019). Electric vehicles are often more digitally connected than
conventional vehicles, with many electric vehicles charging stations providing the option
to control charging from a smart phone app. Just like a smart phone, you can plug in
your electric vehicle when you get home and have it ready for you to use the next
morning. There are two types of charging equipment that people who have electric cars
used. It is the AC level 1 equipment which requires no additional cost or installation
provided that a power outlet on dedicated branch circuit is available near their parking
location. AC level 2 charging equipment can be purchased and installed . The most
basic AC level 2 products have standard safety features and status lights. More
advanced, “smart” AC level 2 products have features such as data collection, user
interface systems, enhanced displays, charging timers, communications capabilities,
and keypads. The fuel efficiency of an electric vehicle may be measured in kilowatt-
hours(kWh) per 100 miles. If electricity costs $0.11(2.13 pesos) per kWh and the vehicle
consumes 34 kWh to travel 100 miles, the cost per mile is about $0.04 (0.78 cents). If
electricity costs $0.11 per kilowatt-hour, charging an electric vehicle with a 70 mile
range will cost about $2.64 (51.17 pesos) to reach a full charge.The cost of electricity is
much more stable than the cost of gasoline (Hanley S, 2018). Also one of the benefits of
having an electric vehicle is that it reduced harmful exhaust emissions is good news for
our health. Better air quality will lead to less health problems. Electric vehicles are also
quieter than gasoline vehicles which means less noise pollution. Recent findings have
shown that several electric vehicle features can improve safety. Electric vehicle tend to
have a lower centre of gravity that makes them less likely to roll over. They can also
have a lower risk for major fires or explosions and the body construction and durability
of electric vehicles may make them safer in collision. Aside from the advantages of
having an electric vehicle there is also the disadvantages of having an electric vehicle.
Electric powered vehicles require charging stations and for people to travel long
distances there needs to be a network of such stations located strategically and electric
cars can only travel only about 100 miles on average on a single charge. Also the
disadvantage of having an electric vehicle is that most of electric cars available today
are small and 2 seated only. They are not meant for entire family (Rinkesh, 2019).

In conclusion,in the next few years. The electric vehicle will be much more
affordable and lots of industries are trying to upgrade the current electric vehicles in
order for people to be comfortable and able to purchase one of their products as the
electronic cars become more popular. Electronic vehicles are definitely more
environmentally friendly than internal combustion vehicles. Batteries are being
engineered to have a long life that can run a vehicle for longer periods of time but also
won’t weight the vehicle down. Research into other energy sources such as fuel cells
and renewable fuels make the future look brighter for hybrid electric cars. With these
changes in the way cars are manufactured and run, we are a step closer to developing
an alternative source of transportation that can cut back on oil use and lessen the
effects of car emissions on the earths atmosphere.
https://www.energy.gov/articles/history-electric-car

https://afdc.energy.gov/fuels/electricity charging home.html

https://www.ergon.com.au/network/smarter-energy/electric-vehicles/benefits-of-electric-
vehicles

Ucsusa.org

Lelandwest.com

Cleantechnica.com