Nobel laureate cautions against electric car hype
Leading scientists discuss a greener future.
The lower costs of owning an electric vehicle and the idea of a green lifestyle are driving the popularity of electric vehicles. However, is it truly environmentally friendly?
Despite not producing emissions, electric vehicles are not fully zero carbon, and the 2010 Nobel Laureate in Physics, Andre Geim, is cautioning people to distinguish between hype and scientific reality.
Future energy is misunderstood, Geim said at the WLA Zero Carbon Forum, part of the fifth World Laureates Forum (WLA Forum) that will be officially held on November 6-7.
Many may believe that driving an electric car is a means to live sustainably, but this is not the case, he said, citing the large energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions involved in automobile manufacture.
But Steven Chu, winner of the 1997 Nobel Prize in Physics, viewed the rising replacement of gas-powered cars by electric cars as good news.
It is anticipated that by 2040, more than half of all light-duty vehicles will be electric. Currently, approximately 3 percent of all light-duty vehicles are electric. However, lithium is still a concern, he noted, citing the exorbitant cost of lithium batteries and the enormous pollution generated by lithium extraction.
Therefore, it is essential to upgrade the batteries. In recent research, scientists have attempted to extract lithium from seawater, a process that, according to him, requires greater attention.
Steven Chu speaks at the WLA Zero Carbon Forum.
Geim asserts that there is no such thing as 100 percent green energy.
Using solar energy as an example, which is usually regarded as an ideal form of clean energy, he said that it would take seven years to counteract the carbon footprints produced by solar panels, which have the capacity to cover one million square kilometers. In addition, these solar panels have to be recycled and refurbished every 50 years.
Therefore, in his perspective, the recycling economy depends on more efficient transportation and electricity. And nuclear fusion may raise hopes for a solution to global warming.
Nuclear fusion can function like the sun. If properly managed, it is capable of carbon fixation. Geim said that it would produce cleaner and safer energy.
Extreme weather, which is intimately linked to global warming, has become a significant global concern.
According to Michael Levitt, winner of the 2013 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, extreme weather events that used to occur once every 100 years now occur almost every four years.
Zhu Tong, an academician from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said climate change also poses health dangers. He said that heat might cause forest fires, spread illnesses, and raise the danger of suffering a stroke.
China has made significant efforts to deal with climate change.
It has declared that its carbon dioxide emissions will peak by 2030 and reach carbon neutrality by 2060. The country has the highest number of wind, photovoltaic, hydro, and biomass electricity capacities installed as it pursues a green growth.
Andre Geim delivers a speech.
