IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/appene/v401y2025ipbs0306261925014680.html

A techno-economic life cycle assessment of H2 fuelled and electrified urban buses

Author

Listed:
  • Peiretti Paradisi, B.
  • Pulvirenti, L.
  • Vinogradov, A.
  • Rolando, L.
  • Piano, A.
  • Millo, F.
  • Prussi, M.

Abstract

Nowadays, several technologies based on powertrain electrification and the exploitation of hydrogen represent valuable options for decarbonizing the on-road public transport sector. The considered alternatives should exhibit an effective benchmark between CO2 reduction potential and production/operational costs. Conducting a comprehensive Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) analysis, coupled with a thorough Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is therefore crucial in shaping the future for cleaner urban mobility. From this perspective, this study compares different powertrain configurations for a 12 m urban bus: a conventional diesel Internal Combustion Engine Vehicle (ICEV), a series hybrid diesel, two hydrogen-based series hybrid vehicles: a Hydrogen Hybrid Electric Vehicle featuring an H2-ICE (H2-HEV) or a Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV), and a Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV). Moreover, a sensitivity analysis has been conducted on the carbon footprint for power generation, considering also the marginal electricity mix. In addition, prospective LCA and TCO elements are introduced by addressing future technological projections for the 2030 horizon. The research reveals that, as of today, the BEV and hydrogen-fueled vehicles have comparable environmental impacts when the marginal electricity mix is considered. The techno-economic analysis indicates that, under current conditions, FCEVs and H2-HEVs are not cost-effective for CO₂ reduction unless powered by renewable energy sources. However, considering future technological advancements and market evolution, FCEVs offer the most promising balance between economic and environmental benefits, particularly if hydrogen prices reach €4 per kilogram. If hydrogen-powered vehicles remain a niche market, BEVs will be the most viable option for decarbonizing the transport sector in most European countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Peiretti Paradisi, B. & Pulvirenti, L. & Vinogradov, A. & Rolando, L. & Piano, A. & Millo, F. & Prussi, M., 2025. "A techno-economic life cycle assessment of H2 fuelled and electrified urban buses," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 401(PB).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:401:y:2025:i:pb:s0306261925014680
    DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2025.126738
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261925014680
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.apenergy.2025.126738?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Benedetta Peiretti Paradisi & Luca Pulvirenti & Matteo Prussi & Luciano Rolando & Afanasie Vinogradov, 2025. "Life Cycle Assessment of Different Powertrain Alternatives for a Clean Urban Bus Across Diverse Weather Conditions," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-24, August.
    2. ., 2023. "Cultivate high-quality referee reports," Chapters, in: How to be an Academic Superhero, chapter 11, pages 59-60, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    3. Oecd, 2023. "Online product safety sweep report," OECD Digital Economy Papers 354, OECD Publishing.
    4. Scarlat, Nicolae & Prussi, Matteo & Padella, Monica, 2022. "Quantification of the carbon intensity of electricity produced and used in Europe," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 305(C).
    5. Sebastian Wolff & Moritz Seidenfus & Karim Gordon & Sergio Álvarez & Svenja Kalt & Markus Lienkamp, 2020. "Scalable Life-Cycle Inventory for Heavy-Duty Vehicle Production," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-22, July.
    6. García, Antonio & Monsalve-Serrano, Javier & Martinez-Boggio, Santiago & Soria Alcaide, Rafael, 2023. "Carbon footprint of battery electric vehicles considering average and marginal electricity mix," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 268(C).
    7. repec:osf:metaar:mbx62_v1 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Millo, Federico & Rolando, Luciano & Fuso, Rocco & Mallamo, Fabio, 2014. "Real CO2 emissions benefits and end user’s operating costs of a plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 563-571.
    9. Bruns, Stephan & Herwartz, Helmut & Ioannidis, John P.A. & Islam, Chris-Gabriel & Raters, Fabian H. C., 2023. "Statistical reporting errors in economics," MetaArXiv mbx62, Center for Open Science.
    10. Peters, Jens F. & Baumann, Manuel & Zimmermann, Benedikt & Braun, Jessica & Weil, Marcel, 2017. "The environmental impact of Li-Ion batteries and the role of key parameters – A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 491-506.
    11. Klaus Kivekäs & Antti Lajunen & Jari Vepsäläinen & Kari Tammi, 2018. "City Bus Powertrain Comparison: Driving Cycle Variation and Passenger Load Sensitivity Analysis," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-26, July.
    12. García, Antonio & Monsalve-Serrano, Javier & Lago Sari, Rafael & Tripathi, Shashwat, 2022. "Pathways to achieve future CO2 emission reduction targets for bus transit networks," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 244(PB).
    13. repec:osf:osfxxx:tqen7_v1 is not listed on IDEAS
    14. Beltrami, Filippo & Burlinson, Andrew & Giulietti, Monica & Grossi, Luigi & Rowley, Paul & Wilson, Grant, 2020. "Where did the time (series) go? Estimation of marginal emission factors with autoregressive components," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    15. Yuan Xue & Chuntao Li & Haitao Si, 2023. "Reporting empirical results to .docx files," Stata Journal, StataCorp LLC, vol. 23(2), pages 545-577, June.
    16. Valery Vodovozov & Zoja Raud & Eduard Petlenkov, 2022. "Review of Energy Challenges and Horizons of Hydrogen City Buses," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-27, September.
    17. Hanhee Kim & Niklas Hartmann & Maxime Zeller & Renato Luise & Tamer Soylu, 2021. "Comparative TCO Analysis of Battery Electric and Hydrogen Fuel Cell Buses for Public Transport System in Small to Midsize Cities," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-31, July.
    18. Matteo Prussi & Lorenzo Laveneziana & Lorenzo Testa & David Chiaramonti, 2022. "Comparing e-Fuels and Electrification for Decarbonization of Heavy-Duty Transports," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(21), pages 1-17, October.
    19. -, 2023. "Report on the activities of the Commission, 2022," Libros y Documentos Institucionales, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL), number 68601 edited by Eclac.
    20. Greg Cooney & Troy R. Hawkins & Joe Marriott, 2013. "Life Cycle Assessment of Diesel and Electric Public Transportation Buses," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 17(5), pages 689-699, October.
    21. Sadik-Zada, Elkhan Richard & Santibanez Gonzalez, Ernesto DR & Gatto, Andrea & Althaus, Tomasz & Quliyev, Fuad, 2023. "Pathways to the hydrogen mobility futures in German public transportation: A scenario analysis," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 205(C), pages 384-392.
    22. Lukas Lanz & Bessie Noll & Tobias S. Schmidt & Bjarne Steffen, 2022. "Comparing the levelized cost of electric vehicle charging options in Europe," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-13, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Giacomo Stroffolini & Francesca Tamarozzi & Andrea Fittipaldo & Cristina Mazzi & Brandon Le & Susana Vaz Nery & Dora Buonfrate, 2023. "Impact of preventive chemotherapy on Strongyloides stercoralis: A systematic review and meta-analysis," PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, Public Library of Science, vol. 17(7), pages 1-13, July.
    2. Benedetta Peiretti Paradisi & Luca Pulvirenti & Matteo Prussi & Luciano Rolando & Afanasie Vinogradov, 2025. "Life Cycle Assessment of Different Powertrain Alternatives for a Clean Urban Bus Across Diverse Weather Conditions," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-24, August.
    3. Oscar Lagnelöv & Gunnar Larsson & Anders Larsolle & Per-Anders Hansson, 2021. "Life Cycle Assessment of Autonomous Electric Field Tractors in Swedish Agriculture," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-24, October.
    4. Kolahchian Tabrizi, Mehrshad & Bonalumi, Davide & Lozza, Giovanni Gustavo, 2024. "Analyzing the global warming potential of the production and utilization of lithium-ion batteries with nickel-manganese-cobalt cathode chemistries in European Gigafactories," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 288(C).
    5. Say, Kelvin & Csereklyei, Zsuzsanna & Brown, Felix Gabriel & Wang, Changlong, 2023. "The economics of public transport electrification: A case study from Victoria, Australia," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    6. Kristoffer W. Lie & Trym A. Synnevåg & Jacob J. Lamb & Kristian M. Lien, 2021. "The Carbon Footprint of Electrified City Buses: A Case Study in Trondheim, Norway," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-21, February.
    7. Camila Padovan & Júlia A. G. Fagundes & Márcio de Almeida D’Agosto & Ana Carolina M. Angelo & Pedro J. P. Carneiro, 2023. "Impact of Fuel Production Technologies on Energy Consumption and GHG Emissions from Diesel and Electric–Hydrogen Hybrid Buses in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-13, April.
    8. Manzolli, Jônatas Augusto & Trovão, João Pedro & Antunes, Carlos Henggeler, 2022. "A review of electric bus vehicles research topics – Methods and trends," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    9. Ben Amor, Souhir & Sgarciu, Smaranda & BatzLineiro, Taimyra & Muesgens, Felix, 2025. "Advanced models for hourly marginal CO2 emission factor estimation: A synergy between fundamental and statistical approaches," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 397(C).
    10. Zhang, Rui & Yu, Jilai, 2024. "Evaluating multi-dimensional response capability of electric bus considering carbon emissions and traffic index," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 286(C).
    11. Lily Hanig & Catherine Ledna & Destenie Nock & Corey D. Harper & Arthur Yip & Eric Wood & C. Anna Spurlock, 2025. "Finding gaps in the national electric vehicle charging station coverage of the United States," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-13, December.
    12. Desreveaux, A. & Bouscayrol, A. & Trigui, R. & Hittinger, E. & Castex, E. & Sirbu, G.M., 2023. "Accurate energy consumption for comparison of climate change impact of thermal and electric vehicles," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 268(C).
    13. McCluskey, Jac & Druitt, Tom & Larkin, Charles, 2025. "Sustainability in transit: Assessing the economic case for electric bus adoption in the UK," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 493-508.
    14. Souhir Ben Amor & Smaranda Sgarciu & Taimyra BatzLineiro & Felix Muesgens, 2024. "Advanced Models for Hourly Marginal CO2 Emission Factor Estimation: A Synergy between Fundamental and Statistical Approaches," Papers 2412.17379, arXiv.org.
    15. Tharsis Teoh & Oliver Kunze & Chee-Chong Teo & Yiik Diew Wong, 2018. "Decarbonisation of Urban Freight Transport Using Electric Vehicles and Opportunity Charging," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-20, September.
    16. Jānis Krūmiņš & Māris Kļaviņš, 2023. "Investigating the Potential of Nuclear Energy in Achieving a Carbon-Free Energy Future," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(9), pages 1-31, April.
    17. Marit Mohr & Jens F. Peters & Manuel Baumann & Marcel Weil, 2021. "Corrigendum to Mohr, M., Peters, J.F., Baumann, M., and Weil, M. (2020). Toward a cell‐chemistry specific life cycle assessment of lithium‐ion battery recycling processes. Journal of Industrial Ecology 24(6): 1310‐1322," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 25(2), pages 537-537, April.
    18. Cai, Yanpeng & Applegate, Scott & Yue, Wencong & Cai, Jianying & Wang, Xuan & Liu, Gengyuan & Li, Chunhui, 2017. "A hybrid life cycle and multi-criteria decision analysis approach for identifying sustainable development strategies of Beijing's taxi fleet," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 314-325.
    19. Cordiner, Stefano & Galeotti, Matteo & Mulone, Vincenzo & Nobile, Matteo & Rocco, Vittorio, 2016. "Trip-based SOC management for a plugin hybrid electric vehicle," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 164(C), pages 891-905.
    20. Zheng, Bowen & Deng, Zhichao & Luo, Zhenhao & Mao, Shuoyuan & Ouyang, Minggao & Han, Xuebing & Wang, Hewu & Li, Yalun & Sun, Yukun & Wang, Depeng & Yuan, Yuebo & He, Liangxi & Yang, Zhi & Zhu, Yanlin, 2025. "A comprehensive review of lithium-ion battery modelling research and prospects: in-depth analysis of current research and future directions," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 401(PB).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:401:y:2025:i:pb:s0306261925014680. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/405891/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.