Life cycle thinking evaluation of hydrogen-powered locomotives : a Canadian context
department or school: Applied Science, Faculty of
department or school: Engineering, School of (Okanagan)
data provider: DSpace
degree campus: UBCO
creator: Correa Carrillo, Maria Lizette
issued: 2024-12-09T21:12:53Z
issued: 2024
related degree: Master of Applied Science - MASc
degree grantor: University of British Columbia
description: The energy sector is one of the largest contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions, with the transportation sector alone accounting for approximately one-quarter of these emissions, primarily due to the reliance on fossil fuels. Therefore, clean energy solutions are essential for reducing GHG emissions, and hydrogen has emerged as a promising solution for decarbonizing the transportation sector. This research explores the use of hydrogen in the railway sector, which is recognized as one of the cleanest and most efficient modes of transportation. However, hydrogen can be produced through various pathways, and the potential environmental, economic, and social impacts of its use in locomotives may vary depending on the employed production methods. Consequently, a comprehensive evaluation is necessary to assess these impacts holistically. This thesis employs a life cycle thinking methodology to evaluate the three pillars of sustainability—environmental, economic, and social impacts—across five hydrogen production pathways, comparing these with conventional internal combustion engine locomotives. This life cycle analyzes all phases of the locomotive's life cycle, including the refurbishment with hydrogen technology components, operational use, and end-of-life impacts. Additionally, a multi-criteria decision-making analysis is conducted to compare the life cycle costs, life cycle emissions and potential social impacts of hydrogen-powered locomotives with those of diesel locomotives in seven Canadian regions. This research also presents the development of a multi-criteria decision-making tool designed to assist stakeholders in evaluating hydrogen-powered locomotives with a life cycle perspective. The findings reveal that significant efforts are needed to lower the market cost of hydrogen by around $5/kg to reduce greenhouse gas emissions when implementing hydrogen-powered locomotives. The environmental assessment revealed that the water electrolysis pathway significan…
aggregated CHO: https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/89807
note: LIFE CYCLE THINKING EVALUATION OF HYDROGEN-POWERED LOCOMOTIVES: A CANADIAN CONTEXT by Maria Lizette Correa Carrillo B. Sc. Engineering, University of Guadalajara, 2021 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF APPLIED SCIENCE in The College of Graduate Studies (Civil Engineering) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Okanagan Campus) December 2024 © Maria Lizette Correa Carrillo, 2024 ii The following individuals certify that they have read, and recommend to the College of Graduate Studies for acceptance, the thesis entitled: Life Cycle Thinking Evaluation of Hydrogen-Powered Locomotives: a Canadian Context submitted by Maria Lizette Correa Carrillo in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Applied Science Examining Committee: Dr. Kasun Hewage, School of Engineering Supervisor Dr. Rehan Sadiq, School of Engineering Co-Supervisor Dr. Sumi Siddiqua, School of Engineering Supervisory Committee Member Dr. Sina Kheirhkah, School of Engineering Supervisory Committee Member Dr. Ahmad Al-Dabbagh, School of Engineering University Examiner iii Abstract The energy sector is one of the largest contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions, with the transportation sector alone accounting for approximately one-quarter of these emissions, primarily due to the reliance on fossil fuels. Therefore, clean energy solutions are essential for reducing GHG emissions, and hydrogen has emerged as a promising solution for decarbonizing the transportation sector. This research explores the use of hydrogen in the railway sector, which is recognized as one of the cleanest and most efficient modes of transportation. However, hydrogen can be produced through various pathways, and the potential environmental, economic, and social impacts of its use in locomotives may vary depending on the employed production methods. Consequently, a comprehensive evaluation is necessary to assess these impacts holistically. This thesis em…
has type: Thesis/Dissertation
date issued: 2025-02
is shown at: 10.14288/1.0447428
language: eng
degree discipline: Civil Engineering
provider: Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
publisher: University of British Columbia
rights: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
rights URI: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
scholar level: Graduate
contributor: Hewage, Kasun
contributor: Sadiq, Rehan
type: Text
identifier URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/89807