Environmental impacts of varying electric vehicle user behaviours and comparisons to internal combustion engine vehicle usage – An Irish case study

• Analysis is conducted on real charging data and real-time CO2 intensity data.
• Environmental impacts of EVs are dependent on individual user behaviours.
• EVs have less environmental impacts than ICEVs under a majority of scenarios.
• Night-time charging was found to produce the largest environmental impact.

Concerns have been expressed regarding the displacement of harmful emissions from internal combustion engine vehicle (ICEV) tailpipes to the sources of electricity generation used to charge electric vehicles (EV). The degree to which EVs can reduce the environmental impacts of road transportation is dependent on the fuel mix of electricity generation within a country and on the real-time charging behaviours of EV users since the fuel mix of electricity generation frequently changes. This paper analyses the varying environmental impacts of EVs based on contrasting user behaviours and compares them to the environmental impacts of ICEVs. Individual EV user profiles are developed which comprise real data emerging from charge events undertaken in Ireland, and information is gathered on the actual CO2 intensity of the electrical grid in real-time, allowing for the carbon intensity of every individual charge event to be determined using time and date information. The results show that the environmental impacts of EVs are highly influenced by the charging behaviours of individual users, and night-time charging was found to produce the largest environmental impact. EVs are shown to be a more environmentally friendly choice of vehicle than ICEVs under a wide majority of scenarios.