Greenhouse gas emission mitigation of global automotive manufacturing through clean energy supply

The automotive industry consumes a significant amount of energy in the manufacturing stage. As estimated, a typical vehicle requires approximately 120 Giga Joules of energy input to be manufactured. The consumed energy, directly or indirectly, generates substantial greenhouse gas emissions and a variety of air pollutants into the atmosphere. With more than two thirds of these greenhouse gas emissions generated from grid power consumptions, an effective way to reduce the environmental footprint of automotive manufacturing is to use clean energies to partially supply the power needs of current automotive manufacturing processes. This research is conducted in collaboration with General Motors (GM) Corporation, to explore the potential of using such clean energies as solar PV, wind and fuel cells to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of its global manufacturing facilities.