Life Cycle Environmental Impacts and Costs of AC and DC Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Stations

Abstract Description: The use of fossil fuels in the transportation sector has significantly contributed to the rise in global temperatures in recent years. Transitioning to alternative fuel sources, such as electric energy for vehicles, is feasible only with the provision of adequate electric charging stations. As of 2024, approximately 213,800 ports across 73,568 stations have been introduced. These stations include slow charging alternating current (AC) stations, fast charging direct current (DC) stations, and battery swap stations. The increased infrastructure requirements for charging have necessitated an environmental analysis of the components and energy sources used in these stations. This study evaluates the environmental impact using SimaPro software and the LTS 2023 method, focusing on slow charging AC stations. The components considered include electrical conduits, steel bollards, charging adapters, adapter cords, cable retractors, slow chargers, and charger holders. The environmental impact is assessed through midpoint and endpoint analyses. It was found that the charger (348 kg CO2 eq) and grid electricity (231 kg CO2 eq) contribute most to climate change. Resource depletion is highest for grid electricity (3022 MJ), chargers (2186 MJ), and steel bollards (1048 MJ). The cumulative energy demand (CED) for grid electricity is 4591 MJ, while the charger CED is 3067 MJ. The production and transportation of chargers have a significant impact due to their reliance on fossil fuels. Materials used in charger manufacturing, such as aluminum, ferrite, printed circuit boards, manganese, electricity, and electric arc furnace slag, also contribute to this impact. The use of grid electricity, compared to renewable sources, results in a higher environmental impact due to its dependence on coal and natural gas. A detailed cost analysis highlights the differences between Alternating Current Charging (ACC) stations and Direct Current Charging (DCC) stations. For ACC stations, the annual cost distribution is 68.42% capital cost, 19.70% installation costs, 8.72% operational costs, and 3.15% maintenance costs. In contrast, DCC stations allocate 58.38% to capital costs, 34% to installation costs, 6.94% to operational costs, and only 0.68% to maintenance costs. This analysis essentially helps with planning and optimizing investments in EV infrastructure to support the growing demand.