Mercedes’ F1 team used biofuel to cut freight carbon emissions by 89 percent

Formula 1 isn’t exactly the most environmentally friendly organization, but it’s trying to become much greener. F1 is targeting net zero carbon emissions by the end of the decade and engine makers have been testing sustainable fuels over the last few years. F1 leaders are aiming to only use sustainable fuels in F1 cars by 2026. Race cars are only a small piece of the puzzle, though. Holding two dozen grands prix around the world requires shifting cars, parts and other materials between circuits, which generate more carbon emissions.

The Mercedes-AMG F1 team, however, has experimented with a way to reduce freight emissions. It used hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO 100) biofuel in 16 trucks as it moved operations between Spa, Zandvoort and Monza for the final three European grands prix of the season. Since those circuits are relatively close to each other, Mercedes didn’t need to rely on, say, air freight to ship cars and components. That gave the team a good opportunity to test the biofuel, given a total driving distance of around 1,400 kilometers (870 miles). However, the team noted it needed to use diesel fuel for the last 20km (just over 12 miles) due to supply issues.

An analysis found that using HVO 100 reduced freight emissions by 89 percent. Overall, Mercedes saved 44,091kg (97,204 pounds) of carbon dioxide emissions, compared with solely using diesel for both journeys. It noted HVO 100 is derived from vegetable oils, waste oils and fats and that it’s entirely free of fossil fuels. The fuel also produces less Nox and particulate emissions.

“Sustainability is at the heart of our operations. Trialing the use of biofuels for our land freight is another example of our commitment to embed sustainability in every decision we make and action we take,” Mercedes F1 team principal Toto Wolff said. “We aim to be on the cutting edge of change and hope we can make the adoption of sustainable technology possible as we are all in the race towards a sustainable tomorrow.”

Other biofuels are being tested for use in Formula 1. Teams started using E10 biofuels (which contain 10 percent renewable ethanol) in F1 cars this season as part of the transition to fully sustainable fuels. While that’s some distance away from employing fully sustainable fuels, the use of E10 and HVO 100 are positive steps toward making motorsport much healthier for the environment.

GM wants to help shape the EPA’s next clean car standard

GM wants to exclusively sell electric vehicles by 2035, and it’s now trying to nudge the US government toward the same goal. The automaker has teamed up with an advocacy group, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), to develop recommended principles for the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) car emissions standards from the 2027 model year onward. The guidelines are meant to accelerate EV adoption in a socially conscious way — and, of course, help GM’s bottom line.

The brand wants standards that ensure at least half of new vehicles sold by are zero-emissions by 2030, with a 60 percent reduction in emissions across a lineup compared to 2021. They need to address multiple pollution sources (such as CO2, nitrogen oxides and particles) and be “performance-based,” GM argues. The company also believes there should be an optional pathway to speed up the launch of breakthrough emissions-reducing technology, and that standards should ensure the benefits of reduced pollution apply to everyone (such as vulnerable communities). Not surprisingly, GM hopes for tight coordination between the public and private realms, including complementary investments.

GM and the EDF want a quick decision process. They’d like the standards to be proposed this fall, and completed by fall 2023. The standards should last until 2032 at a minimum, the partners said, but they also hoped the EPA would extend that to 2035.

There might not be much opposition to the basic concept. President Biden already wants half of new vehicles to be emissions-free by 2030, and the EPA reversed Trump-era standards rollbacks in December. Meanwhile, California, Massachusetts and New York State expect to ban sales of new gas-powered cars by 2035 and frequently push for stricter standards than the federal government. The principles and resulting EPA standards would theoretically help politicians reach these targets sooner by encouraging manufacturers to electrify their fleets quickly.

Whether or not GM and the EDF get their way isn’t clear. The EPA isn’t guaranteed to take the principles to heart, and a change of presidents could lead to weaker rules. We’d add that GM has altered its stance on emissions reductions depending on who’s in office. The firm backed the Trump administration’s efforts to revoke waivers letting California set tougher requirements, only to change its tune after Biden won the 2020 election. Still, we wouldn’t expect GM to back out any time soon. The company has staked its future on EVs, and it stands to profit if the market shifts to eco-friendly vehicles a little sooner.

Amazon will start testing ultra-low carbon electrofuels for deliveries in 2023

Amazon is partnering with Infinium to test the use of so-called electrofuels (e-fuels) in its middle-mile diesel fleet, it announced. The company invested in Infinium last year as part of its goal to reach net-zero carbon by 2040. “We’ve been developin…

Puerto Rico loses power as Hurricane Fiona brings threat of ‘catastrophic’ flooding

Almost exactly five years after Hurricane Maria left Puerto Rico in the dark, the US territory is once again facing a power crisis. On Sunday, LUMA Energy, the company that operates the island’s electrical grid, announced that all of Puerto Rico had su…

Samsung vows to produce net zero carbon emissions by 2050

Samsung has made a commitment to achieve net zero carbon emissions for the whole company by 2050 and will spend KRW 7 trillion (US$5 billion) over the next seven-and-a-half years to make that happen. While its plans are likely not as aggressive as Microsoft’s, which previously promised to be carbon negative by the end of the decade, it intends to implement changes soon so that its Device eXperience (DX) Division is producing net zero carbon by 2030. 

Samsung’s DX division encompasses its consumer electronics businesses, including its mobile and display manufacturing operations, and was only responsible for 10 percent of its greenhouse gas emissions in 2021. Meanwhile, the company’s chip and components business, which is often is biggest moneymaker, was responsible for 90 percent of the 17.4 million tons of greenhouses gases it emitted last year. 

Clearly, there’s a lot of work to be done for its chipmaking business to be net zero. One of the things the company plans to do is develop technologies that can significantly reduce the gas byproducts of semiconductor manufacturing. Samsung also plans to install treatment facilities at its chip-making plants. In addition, the company will develop carbon capture and utilization technologies that can harness carbon emissions from its semiconductor facilities, store them and then turn them into a usable source. 

The tech giant has joined RE100, the global initiative for businesses that want to use renewable energy to power their operation, as well. It will start by running the DX division and all operations outside its home country on renewable energy within the next five years before matching 100 percent of all its power needs around the world with renewable energy by 2050. Samsung has also detailed other environmental plans in its announcement, including its commitment to promote water reuse and to expand its electronic waste collection initiative to 180 countries from 50. 

A spokesperson for one of its shareholders told Reuters that Samsung had delayed making a clear commitment towards reducing carbon emissions so much, it became a growing concern among long-term investors. Kim Soo-jin, Samsung’s head of ESG strategy group, explained: “We are a company that manufactures directly… so there are various, layered challenges. In the end, we are a technology company… So we will contribute positively to climate change through technology development. Since we are a large company and our products are widely used, we will make an impact through scale.”