대학신문방송국

The Next Station Is an Eco-Friendly Car

By Yoon Ji-yeon Editor-in-Chief, Junior of Electrical Engineering

When you think about cars, what first comes to your mind? We usually think of refueling at a petrol station, or of complex engines. These classic characteristics of cars have been emerging since the late 19th century when internal-combustion engine cars were first developed.

As the engine cars’ usage increased, they became indispensable in our daily lives. However, the side effects also emerged continuously. By burning gasoline and diesel, which  are both fuel for car engines, fumes are emitted, consisting of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons. Also, exhaust gases have caused environmental pollution, like ozone depletion and fine dust increase. As a solution to these problems, the eco-friendly cars have come into the limelight. So, what kinds of eco-friendly cars are there, and what are the benefits of driving eco-friendly cars? Let’s find out.

Electric Car

The history of the electric car is older than you thought. The first electric car was made in the 1830s, about 30 years earlier than the first internal-combustion engine car. However, the battery was too heavy, and it took too long to charge. That made the electric cars decay, unlike the engine cars. However, electric cars have come back into the spotlight as environmental pollution has worsened around the world.

Electric cars use secondary batteries that charge directly by supplying electricity, and drive motors using the electric energy stored in the battery. As a result, electric cars have a huge advantage that they don’t emit any atmosphere pollution matter or greenhouse gases. In addition, these cars don’t use any consumables, like engine oil, fuel filters etc., and these advantages allow reducing environmental pollution and cost by consumables. They also have regenerative braking ability, and this makes the electric car able to charge on its own.

Hybrid car

Hybrid cars have both an internal combustion engine and an electric motor. Hybrid cars use their engines and motors to suit their use when driving. 

It boasts more than a 40 percent higher fuel efficiency than ordinary internal combustion engine vehicles, because it has a system that mixes engine and motor driving in five driving types: Start and slow, acceleration drive, high speed, deceleration drive, and stop. The low use of fuel creates less environmental pollution. Also, it has regenerative braking ability, like the electric car, and it makes the hybrid car able to charge on its own. There is also an advantage with hybrid cars that they can be recharged much quicker because they are also charged by the engine, unlike the electric cars which take a long time.

Hydrogen-electric car

Hydrogen-electric cars are not widely known, compared to electric cars and hybrid cars. The commercial vehicles of Hydrogen-electric cars have only recently been launched, and the research is still ongoing. The hydrogen-electric cars are powered by fuel cells that produce electricity by the reaction of hydrogen and oxygen in the air. In other words, this car is powered by the electrical energy that is transformed from the chemical energy of hydrogen. In this process, this car only emits water and heat. This is why hydrogen-electric cars are called zero-emit vehicles, and are in the limelight as eco-friendly vehicles.

In addition, hydrogen-electrical cars can purify the air. They suck the air, purify it, use it for hydrogen fuel cells, and then exhale clean air back into the exhaust vent. This has given the hydrogen-electric car the nickname of the “Moving Air Purifier.” Taking advantage of these benefits, the hydrogen-electrical cars are used as large sized busses, and public institution vehicles.

The benefits of eco-friendly cars

The government is also planning to actively distribute such eco-friendly cars. The Korean government distributed 136,000 eco-friendly cars in 2021, and has set a goal for distributing 7,850,000 eco-friendly cars by 2030. To achieve this goal, the government and local governments are also making efforts to provide subsidies and other benefits.

If you have an electric car, you can get subsidies of up to 8 million won. However, this differs according to the price of vehicles and the local governments that provide the subsidies.

In the case of hybrid cars, the consumption taxes included in the price of cars can be reduced by about 1 million won when purchasing cars. Besides this, there are various other benefits like motorway tolls, 50 percent off, public parking fees, 50 percent off, etc. You can get more specific information about the model, and benefits through the QR code on the right side.

To solve the problem of environmental pollution, engineers and scientists are working on new technologies. To help the planet, why don’t we buy eco-friendly vehicles with no emissions? This will make the environment more healthy in the future.