Are Electric Vehicles Superior To Combustion Vehicles?
Internal-combustion-engine-powered vehicles are believed by many to be a technology of the past, soon to be replaced entirely by “electric” vehicles. This belief system is ironic, because the battery-powered electric motor is not at all a new invention, at least not compared to many modern inventions in humanity’s technological timeline. It was actually developed before the internal combustion engine (making it a more antiquated technology) in the year 1834. The first commercially available internal combustion engine wasn’t developed until 1860.
Seattle City Light Superintendent Gordon Vickery charging a modified AMC Gremlin. Photo credit: Seattle Municipal Archives
So, clearly, electric vehicles are not a new invention. Despite what many recent EV adopters may believe, the earliest EV’s date back to the 1830’s and were powered by single-use batteries. Combustion engines (while more recently developed) are also not a particularly new invention. Therefore, it isn’t productive to think about one propulsion technology “replacing” another, because the two dominant types have co-existed for nearly 200 years. When discussing electric vehicles, it's important to clarify that there are multiple types of “EV’s.” Common as well, are what we most commonly refer to as “plug-in hybrid” or simply, “hybrid” electric vehicles; perhaps most notably, the Toyota Prius would fall under this category. “Battery electric” vehicles (which up until recently were best exemplified by a typical ‘golf cart’), differ from the plug-in hybrids in that they are 100% electric and are powered by a rechargeable battery reservoir, which must be charged by “plugging in.” With battery electrics, there is no supplementary power, no alternative energy source, like those found in plug-in hybrids, which are also equipped with a combustion engine that can be/is used in lieu of a depleted battery.
Studies have been conducted suggesting that most plug-in hybrid owners don't actually “plug in” because it is far more convenient to instead simply fill up a gas tank and drive hybrid vehicles, forgoing the charge. Instead, the combustion process turns the engine’s crankshaft (and by extension its crank pulley), which gives way to the passive charge made possible by an alternator; and in more modern cars, through regenerative braking as well. The batteries onboard a car like the Toyota Prius are then effectively recharged by the consumption of a combustible fuel. For a hybrid vehicle (which has fewer batteries), “plugging in” has minimal efficiency gains and is inconvenient, especially if the owner doesn't have a convenient means to charge their vehicle at home.
Only a small percentage of households worldwide that own one or more cars have access to exclusive charging infrastructure. This, of course, is a major concern for advocates of battery electric vehicles, because the cars must be plugged in to continue driving, unlike the hybrids.
Which Design Is The ‘Highest’ Tech?
Amongst these differing technologies, only one of the archetypal vehicles in circulation is actually a new development, and that is the “plug-in hybrid.” Only recently have two very different means of propulsion (internal combustion engines and electric motors) been successfully combined to achieve drastically improved fuel efficiency.
Most notably, hybrids make use of multiple types of fuel. “Fuel” is a generic term, as are phrases like “fuel economy” or “fuel efficiency.” The word “fuel” can also be used to describe electricity, especially with regard to an electric vehicle. Fuel is also a synonym for energy. All fuel is energy. All things, really, are fundamentally energy. Simplifying these ideas can be useful when thinking about propulsion, and the energy we need to maintain our transportation demands.
Is Electricity Truly Cleaner Than Gasoline?
Gasoline/petroleum (a refined variant of fossil fuel) contains immense potential energy. Despite what many “first world country” governments would have you believe, the overwhelming majority of the world’s electricity is still generated by the incineration of coal and crude oil. That means that, technically, electric vehicles are still mainly powered by “fossil fuel” in the year 2023. The oil and/or coal is burned inside power plants where giant turbines are rotated, which generates electricity. The exhaust gasses from these chemical reactions are filtered more completely than we are accustomed to with a gas-powered vehicle. Cars are not able to filter hydrocarbons as thoroughly as power plants because the means of filtering those gasses involves very large machines that one could not fit within a car. So while oil-fueled-electricity is far from “zero emissions,” it is far cleaner than the gasses expelled from within a typical internal combustion engine. It's important to consider fossil fuel power plants because they represent an interconnectedness between what we commonly think of as “combustible fuel” (liquid fuel stored in a vehicle’s tank) and electricity; and that, at the end of the day, they are both simply “energy” utilized for propulsion.
The argument could be made, of course, that electricity is a much more raw or “pure” form of energy, in that as far as we can tell, electricity is simply the flow of electrons through conductors, which is forced via charging (ionizing) the atoms that make up dense matter. Attempting to explain precisely what electricity is historically has been a fool's errand, because although we have theories that remain yet unproven, there are none that can say with certainty. But, what is proven is that electricity is real, and that we can use it to do a great many things; including the rotation of motors with great force, (which translates to torque/centripetal force) and movement of a wheel.
Which Design Leads To A More Sustainable Future?
So then, the question is, which form of propulsion is most suitable for the needs of humanity and the needs of planet Earth in the future? What sort of technology should we be developing now?
In the year 2023, many automobile manufacturers claim that they will discontinue the manufacture of internal combustion engines in the near future. Most recently, Volvo has made a pledge that they're going to be “fully electric” by the year 2030. This is a common trend today. Many climate change advocates believe that electric vehicles are “zero emissions,” and therefore, by driving, they do not contribute to the ongoing “warming” of the planet via emissions of greenhouse gasses that result in a global rise in ambient temperature.
Image via Adobe Stock
The true effects of internally combusted hydrocarbons remains a debated topic, and the question as to whether or not electric vehicles are actually “better” for the Earth remains unanswered. While electric vehicles do reduce “emissions,” their manufacture certainly doesn’t appear to be “sustainable,” as the collection of needed elements used in the production of rechargeable battery reservoirs has devastating environmental impacts. However, ecology, environmentalism, nor atmospheric conditions are not intended to be the main topics of discussion in this article.
While electric motor propulsion was invented about 30 years before the internal combustion engine, both designs were well understood prior to the advent of assembly line manufacturing and factory production of automobiles. Obviously, we know how things panned out in the 20th century. Overwhelmingly, internal combustion engines were the propulsion method of choice, they were widely produced all over the world, and were adopted by consumers in every developed country. To this day, they are utilized every day en masse to power humanity's transportation sector. This, of course, is not a technology limited to cars or trucks. It's also used in boats, airplanes, motorcycles, generators, tools, and so on. Following growing concerns about the sustainability of fossil fuel as an energy source, great attention has been fixed on gasoline/petroleum combustion power as an assailant to the natural world. This trend has acted as a major catalyst for governments concerned with “climate change” to penalize the sale and production of combustion vehicles, as well as the fuel needed to operate them.
It’s plain to see that the main reason electric vehicles were not adopted broadly in the 20th century is due to battery technology. The availability of batteries, the weight of batteries, and perhaps most importantly, the cost of batteries at that time made the marketability of electric vehicles difficult, and the battery capabilities made daily use unrealistic. For example, storing enough lead acid batteries on the chassis of a car to provide enough range for a person to make a round trip to and from work… it just wasn't feasible. Not only would they have had less range than a car powered by gasoline, but that car would have been very, very heavy. The batteries would have needed to be recycled every year; and throughout the course of that year, the user would have had noticeably reduced range as the batteries degraded over time.
However, in the early 21st century, we're seeing a very significant adoption of electric vehicles, and this proliferation has occurred primarily due to advancements made in battery technology. While many pursue electric transport for environmental reasons, the argument that battery electric vehicles are “zero emissions” wouldn’t exactly hold up in court. It is fair to say that while the electricity is being expended and the wheels are turning after the vehicle has been charged, there is no gaseous emission happening as a result of the propulsion itself.
It may come as a surprise to some, but there are a great many gaseous emissions associated with the manufacturing of those vehicles and their batteries, starting with the mining process (which grievously disturbs settled, carbon sequestered soil), the transportation of all the materials needed to construct the car, and most notably the production of all the electricity needed to propel those vehicles.
Now, of course, electricity can be gathered without causing emissions. But the whole argument over whether or not something is zero emissions, I would say, is folly because no matter what humans do, there are emissions associated with our existence. Therefore, “zero emissions” is deceptive/dishonest marketing. Currently, it isn’t even clear that a vehicle is capable of zero emissions. It is, nevertheless, a very successful marketing tactic and is the primary motivation for many people who adopt electric vehicles in the 21st century. Many buyers believe that battery electric vehicles are better for the environment, but it’s important to remember that this view is subjective, and the argument is easily countered.
Battery electric vehicles are lower maintenance than internal combustion engines because the design of an electric vehicle is simpler than those propelled by an internal combustion engine. As battery technology continues to develop, electric vehicles become more affordable, their range increases, and their performance improves.
At the same time, combustion vehicles are also rapidly improving in terms of efficiency and affordability. The concern that internal combustion engines are unfriendly to the environment and cause global warming is valid, but that is far from an absolute fact. If one considers that the fuel consumed by combustion vehicles needn’t be carbon-based; (it doesn’t have to be gasoline or diesel) there are alternative fuel sources and they are not only efficient, but also much cleaner for the environment. Most notably, there is hydrogen power (the most abundant form of energy in the universe), ethanol (derived from plants), and various synthetic fuels in development - some of which may possibly achieve a “negative carbon” or “carbon neutral” production process. Cleaner fuels not only improve the performance of an internal combustion engine (and eliminate various filtration parts that inhibit the engine’s efficiency), but new fuels can also be engineered to emit gasses which are not harmful to the environment.
In the case of hydrogen or water-powered vehicles, there's an argument to be made that internal combustion engines can actually clean the air through propulsion because they intake the atmosphere and exhaust water vapor. Water, of course, is not only the most valuable resource on Earth (at least as far as life is concerned) but it is also nature's most potent cleansing agent. It is in some ways akin to the original propulsion technology (which predates the internal combustion engine) known as the “steam engine,” - the invention that began the Industrial Revolution.
So then, by which metrics do we determine whether a propulsion technology is “better” for future use? I'll preface the answer by stating: both technologies are practical for use in the future transportation sector because being 100% dependent upon one method for one’s needs in any context is (generally) poor strategy.
For example, events that trigger power outages or any disruptions in electricity production, like: natural disasters that damage power plants (particularly nuclear plants), inconsistencies in solar exposure (in the case of solar panel technology) caused by volcanic eruptions, cloud cover, dust, etc., and various other natural disasters, like solar flares, (which can damage computer systems in our energy grid, as well as the vehicle electronics).
In the event that the energy production needed for one type of propulsion is disrupted, it is wise to have alternative means to transport much-needed resources such as food, medicine, clean water, building materials, and of course, people for labor. These scenarios make a strong argument for internal combustion (in the form of a purely combustion-powered vehicles or as a hybrid electric vehicles).
The counter-argument against combustion is the logistics concern that gas production (oil collection and distribution), refueling of the gas stations around the world, etc. can just as easily be disrupted. And while this is always a concern (and certainly has happened throughout recorded history), as we mentioned earlier, combustion vehicles do not need to rely on gasoline. In fact, modern vehicles are capable of operating on multiple different fuel sources (different blends of liquid fuel) and also on gaseous fuel that can be stored in tanks and collected at home through various means. Hydrogen and plant-based fuels can be produced locally and affordably.
So while electricity is abundant and always available, gathering it (at least enough of it) and transmitting it through a network of conductors (known as the energy grid) is no small feat - especially not if all of our vehicles are electric. Electricity-on-demand is a very vast process, ongoing and quite delicate. In wartime, for example, it is much easier to gather various fuel sources that can be combusted than to plug in your battery electric vehicle to charge after the nearby power plants have been destroyed. So the issue of energy availability is a chief concern for vehicle propulsion, and the merits of an “all electric” strategy are vulnerable to many realistic concerns/incompatibilities. It is certainly not determined that electricity (as an energy source) is more reliable or easier to come by than combustible fuel (like hydrogen gas), and therefore, one cannot logically assume that electric vehicles are “the future” based on the idea that electricity is more available or more reliable.
Which Technology Reigns Supreme in Motorsport?
The Ferrari 296 GTB is an electrifying blend of power and efficiency, combining stunning performance with hybrid technology. Image Via Ferrari of Central Florida
So, what about performance? This is a much more technical subject when attempting to determine which propulsion technology is superior. But, in the year 2023, it's safe to conclude that there is no clear winner. The highest level of motorsport application is Formula One, a competition circuit consisting of race cars that are nowhere near street legal and can achieve land speed records that normal passenger vehicles are simply incapable of. At the highest levels of Formula One, all of the vehicles utilize hybrid electric/combustion propulsion. The World Rally Championship is also rapidly moving toward an entirely hybrid competition.
How do these cars function? It's well known that combustion vehicles are propelled by the capture of controlled explosions utilized as kinetic energy to turn a large steel shaft (known as a crankshaft) which is then (through various gearing mechanisms) transferred to torque at the axles (or more specifically at the wheel hubs), the very end of the “drivetrain.”
In short, a gearing system is inefficient at low speeds. A drivetrain has the least amount of mechanical advantage in first gear (the smallest gear by diameter). But as speed increases and the gears graduate to larger sizes, mechanical advantage increases; which results in having one or multiple gears referred to as “overdrive” (which means that the amount of rotation that takes place at the wheels is greater than the amount of rotation occurring within a transmission gearbox).
Therefore, when approaching top speed, an internal combustion engine with a gearing system demonstrates significantly greater mechanical advantage, significantly greater rotational force, and capacity for higher top speed than the technology most commonly used in electric vehicles, which is known as “direct drive.”
Battery electric vehicles, most notably the vehicles manufactured by Tesla, Inc., are capable of astounding acceleration (particularly in a straightaway) utilizing the propulsion system known as “direct drive.” There is no gearing system. There is no drivetrain. Energy is transferred directly from battery reservoirs to an electromagnetic motor, which turns the axle directly, eliminating the gearing process.
This method offers a great advantage at low speeds, which produces far greater torque in a scenario where the traditional drivetrain is “gearing up,” (mainly “rowing” through first and second gear).
Hybrid vehicles reign supreme at the highest levels of competition because they use small electric motors accompanied by small battery reservoirs that weigh a fraction of the fully battery electric reservoirs found in vehicles manufactured by Tesla, Inc. Hybrid electric motors serve only to propel a car from low speed up into mid-speed; in terms of a traditional six-speed transmission, the motor eliminates first gear, and in some cases, it would eliminate the need for a second gear as well. But there comes a point where a transmission’s gear ratio reaches 1:1 (being third or fourth gear in a traditional gearbox), where the internal combustion engine then becomes much more efficient and much more powerful than a direct drive system as it gains speed, gears up, and establishes significantly more mechanical advantage with larger gears that can’t be turned by an engine at low speeds.
Therefore, hybrid vehicles have the fast acceleration made available by battery electric vehicles, and they also have the top speed, lighter weight, and superior handling made available by the traditional internal combustion engine vehicle.
It is unclear which technology is superior in terms of motorsport; however, what is clear is that hybrid electric/combustion vehicles are far more efficient than traditional internal combustion vehicles, reducing strain/wear on an engine and that they make use of the superior mechanical advantage made available by a drivetrain. Hybrid vehicles are also producing the fastest lap times in Formula One and the first generation Rally1 hybrids indicate that they will soon be faster than the latest combustion-only race cars recently retired in 2022.
Are Hybrids The solution?
The efficiency of hybrids is made even more apparent in traffic (which is obviously the most important scenario in terms of widespread adoption) because of the combined advantages of both propulsion technologies combined with techniques like regenerative braking. Whenever a modern battery electric vehicle is slowing down, it is then gathering that kinetic energy and transitioning it to latent electrical energy through electromagnetism. However, a drivetrain powered by an internal combustion engine, when at cruising speeds (for example, on a road trip or commuting on highways and freeways), has better efficiency than a direct drive system. The excessive energy generated by the rotation of a crankshaft (via various belts and pulleys) allows for the fitment of large alternators (electromagnets turned by belts that produce significant electric current), which can be used to charge onboard batteries.
In trucking, (which is the most important sector for transportation of needed goods) most of the travel is on freeways and highway systems. If fuel being consumed in a combustion engine is also being used simultaneously to charge batteries, then that electricity can be used to propel a semi-truck from zero movement. In that span, no combustible fuel is consumed, and the efficiency of the truck is drastically improved.
If we combine these improvements with development into thermoelectric power, we can capture the excess heat generated by the combustion process and transition that thermal energy to electricity as well; and with the adoption of clean fuels that provide greater efficiency and burn cooler than gasoline, it's easy to see how hybrid vehicles could become the new transportation standard.
So, to recap: hybrid vehicles are the latest in technological development, hybrid vehicles are the highest performing vehicles in motorsport, and hybrid vehicles are also the most efficient in terms of energy consumption. It's important to recognize that the hybrids I'm referring to are not Toyota Priuses, which consume gasoline and emit harmful gasses. I’m talking about the hybrid electric vehicles of the future, which consume clean fuel sources and also generate an unprecedented amount of electricity during the consumption of said fuel and the subsequent momentum through means of alternators, regenerative braking, thermoelectric capture of heat, and perhaps even onboard rotor systems capable of capturing the kinetic energy of the atmosphere as the car moves through space.
Vehicles of this nature do not need to be plugged in to an energy grid. They are capable of charging their own battery reservoirs, and they are capable of consuming a multitude of different fuel sources, whether liquid or gas. These are truly new vehicles. They are 21st-century vehicles. And they combine the best elements of both the internal combustion engine and the electric motor.