JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Special Issue Composites for mobility - May 2020 - 18

TRENDS Europe

present several advantages to meet
these challenges.

Fig. 1: Sales evolution by
vehicle type in the world
(2004-2019)
Source: Inovev

Fig. 2: Sales of battery
electric vehicles (BEV) by
country (2004-2019)
Source: Inovev

other country) to develop a societal
and industrial strategy for BEVs, in order to comply with their objective of
depolluting big cities and to develop a
global leadership for key technologies,
and therefore for the development of
markets related to these technologies.
A striking example is electronic communications with mobile phones
(Huawei and Xiaomi) and networks
(5G - Huawei). The strategy is to
create and develop world champions,
first present only on the big Chinese
market and then expanding globally.
The automotive industry could be the
next sector to follow this path.
This strategy is strongly supported by
the centralised structure of the Chinese economy. In the automotive industry, the Chinese government can
use efficient development levers such
as big centralised funds allocated to
R&D and industrialization, subsidies,
bonuses, management, etc.
However, the sky has a limit and the
Chinese economy, just like Western

economies, is constrained by the
fundamentals. Can the electric vehicle market sustainably move from a
market supported by the government
towards a market subjected to the laws
of the market economy?
Electric vehicles are ready to face
European challenges
European cities are increasingly facing
problems caused by transport and traffic, such as congestion, air and noise
pollution, and road safety. At the same
time, urban mobility is vital for European cities. In 2010, 73% of European
citizens lived in urban areas and this
percentage is expected to increase to
over 80% by 2050. Therefore, urban
mobility is a major contributor to
Europe's economic growth, jobs and
competitiveness.
The question of how to enhance
mobility while reducing congestion,
accidents and pollution is a common
challenge to all major cities. Electrified vehicles, and especially BEVs,

jec composites magazine / SPECIAL ISSUE Mobility / May 2020

Air quality
Air quality is an important parameter
to ensure the sustainable development
of a city. However, the road transport
sector has not reduced its emissions
enough to meet air quality standards
or has even increased the emissions
of some pollutants. For example, nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from
road transport have not decreased
sufficiently to meet air quality standards in many urban areas. According
to the statistical pocketbook 2019 of
the European Commission, the transport sector is the largest contributor to
NOx emissions, accounting for 46%
of the total EU 28 emissions in 2014.
BEVs have the advantage of emitting
no harmful pollution for living beings. As for PHEVs, the objective is to
combine the advantages of BEVs and
HEVs.
(Note: this is indeed the case if the
user plugs his car and runs sufficiently
on the electric mode.
Unfortunately, it is far from being a
general use, and this type of vehicle
may then pollute more than a thermal
one).
Noise pollution
Noise pollution, caused by traffic,
construction, industry and some recreational activities, is also becoming a
major issue. In addition to discomfort,
noise has direct and indirect health
effects.
Urbanization and inefficient urban
planning generate a growing demand
for motorised transport and consequently a noisy environment (Figure
3). In this situation, BEVs are currently the best solution to reduce noise
pollution.
CO2 emissions
The transport sector is far behind its
sustainability goals (Figure 4). The
EU objective is both to lower C02

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Special Issue Composites for mobility - May 2020

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