New steels coupled with new
designs significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the Future
Steel Vehicle Program (FSV).
"We're not just looking at
the vehicle design and its impact on greenhouse gases at the tailpipe," says
Jody Shaw, manager, technical marketing and product research, U.S. Steel Corp.
and chair of the FSV Program. "We're concerned with the whole life cycle of the
vehicle, from the emissions produced and energy used to create raw materials,
all the way to the impact of recycling. If the whole life cycle is not taken
into account, there is the distinct possibility of having a net increase in
greenhouse gasses if the wrong material choice is made. This isn't just
speculation - we have very clear models that demonstrate this."
The Future Steel Vehicle
technical team includes EDAG, Quantum Technologies, Shanghai
Fuel Cell Vehicle Powertrain Co./Tongji and WorldAutoSteel material
experts. The group is studying four options for the proposed year 2015-2020
vehicle: electric (EV) and plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) vehicles for four or
more passengers; and plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) and fuel cell (FCV)
vehicles for five passengers.
"We have shown that with the
use of current advanced high-strength steels, a vehicle's body structure mass
can be reduced by at least 25 percent," said Ron Krupitzer, vice president
automotive applications for the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI).
"However, with the new third generation steels now under development, we expect
to achieve more than 35 percent in structural mass reduction, which will
significantly help automakers improve fuel efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas
emissions."
Krupitzer also said the U.S. steel
industry, in collaboration with its global counterparts, are undertaking
aggressive research and development programs to develop the next generation of
iron and steelmaking technologies that will drastically reduce or eliminate
greenhouse gas emissions throughout the total life cycle of the vehicle. The
AISI says that steel produces five to 15 times less emission than other
materials used for lightweighting.
The AISI Automotive
Applications Committee includes AK Steel Corp., ArcelorMittal, ArcelorMittal
Dofasco, Nucor Corp., Severstal North America .and the United States Steel
Corp.
As part of its new more aggressive posture, the steel industry also announced
creation of the AISI Steel Market Development Institute (SMDI) with the mission
"to advance the competitive use of steel through a market-driven strategy that
promotes cost effective steel based solutions."
The new Institute, which will operate as a business unit of AISI, is
being funded through a direct investment from eight steel producers.
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