Abstract:
“Carbon peaking” and “carbon neutrality” are important strategic decisions implemented by countries, and the development of electric vehicles is one measure of achieving low carbon emissions. This study proposes a regional-level method for assessing carbon emissions of electric vehicles from a full lifecycle perspective. This method addresses the one-sidedness and inaccuracies present in existing carbon emission assessments for electric vehicles. To evaluate the carbon emissions of electric vehicles throughout their life cycle, an evaluation index and a quantitative model, beginning from the material and fuel cycles, were constructed. Subsequently, a three-stage data envelopment analysis was employed to analyze the carbon emissions and obtain the carbon emission assessment results of all regional electric vehicles. The method was further applied at the provincial level using actual vehicle and development data from each province to evaluate the carbon emissions of electric vehicles in various provinces of China. The simulation results indicated significant differences in the carbon emission efficiency of provincial electric vehicles in China and demonstrated that the proposed evaluation method can eliminate random factor disturbances and comprehensively evaluate the carbon emissions of regional electric vehicles.