Electric tractors are powered by electric vehicle batteries, or, in the case of plug-ins, by an electric power cable.
Electric tractors are powered by electric vehicle batteries, or, in the case of plug-ins, by an electric power cable.
Electric tractors offer several advantages over diesel tractors. An electric motor needs less maintenance than a diesel motor, which has hundreds of moving parts. Electricity can offer cost savings over diesel fuel. Greenhouse gas emissions, estimated at 53 tons per year for a typical diesel tractor, are drastically reduced. [1]
Electric tractors are manufactured by a German company, Fendt, and by US companies, Solectrac and Monarch Tractor. [2] [3] [4] [5]
In October 2022, The US-American company Ideanomics, which specializes in electric utility vehicles, has commissioned what it claims is the largest assembly plant for electric tractors in North America. The plant in Windsor, California, has the capacity to produce 4,100 electric tractors annually. The vehicles built in Windsor are from Solectrac, a manufacturer acquired by Ideanomics. [6]
John Deere's protoype electric tractor is a plug-in, powered by an electrical cable. [1]
A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or construction. Most commonly, the term is used to describe a farm vehicle that provides the power and traction to mechanize agricultural tasks, especially tillage, and now many more. Agricultural implements may be towed behind or mounted on the tractor, and the tractor may also provide a source of power if the implement is mechanised.
A hybrid vehicle is one that uses two or more distinct types of power, such as submarines that use diesel when surfaced and batteries when submerged. Other means to store energy include pressurized fluid in hydraulic hybrids.
An electric vehicle (EV) is a vehicle that uses one or more electric motors for propulsion. It can be powered by a collector system, with electricity from extravehicular sources, or it can be powered autonomously by a battery. EVs include, but are not limited to, road and rail vehicles, surface and underwater vessels, electric aircraft, and electric spacecraft. For road vehicles, together with other emerging automotive technologies such as autonomous driving, connected vehicles, and shared mobility, EVs form a future mobility vision called Connected, Autonomous, Shared, and Electric (CASE) Mobility.
A zero-emission vehicle, or ZEV, is a vehicle that does not emit exhaust gas or other pollutants from the onboard source of power. The California definition also adds that this includes under any and all possible operational modes and conditions. This is because under cold-start conditions for example, internal combustion engines tend to produce the maximum amount of pollutants. In a number of countries and states, transport is cited as the main source of greenhouse gases (GHG) and other pollutants. The desire to reduce this is thus politically strong.
A green vehicle, clean vehicle, eco-friendly vehicle or environmentally friendly vehicle is a road motor vehicle that produces less harmful impacts to the environment than comparable conventional internal combustion engine vehicles running on gasoline or diesel, or one that uses certain alternative fuels. Presently, in some countries the term is used for any vehicle complying or surpassing the more stringent European emission standards, or California's zero-emissions vehicle standards, or the low-carbon fuel standards enacted in several countries.
A plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) is a hybrid electric vehicle whose battery pack can be recharged by plugging a charging cable into an external electric power source, in addition to internally by its on-board internal combustion engine-powered generator. Most PHEVs are passenger cars, but there are also PHEV versions of commercial vehicles and vans, utility trucks, buses, trains, motorcycles, mopeds, and even military vehicles.
An electric truck is an electric vehicle powered by batteries designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work.
An alternative fuel vehicle is a motor vehicle that runs on alternative fuel rather than traditional petroleum fuels. The term also refers to any technology powering an engine that does not solely involve petroleum. Because of a combination of factors, such as environmental concerns, high oil-prices and the potential for peak oil, development of cleaner alternative fuels and advanced power systems for vehicles has become a high priority for many governments and vehicle manufacturers around the world.
The United States produced 5.2 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2020, the second largest in the world after greenhouse gas emissions by China and among the countries with the highest greenhouse gas emissions per person. In 2019 China is estimated to have emitted 27% of world GHG, followed by the United States with 11%, then India with 6.6%. In total the United States has emitted a quarter of world GHG, more than any other country. Annual emissions are over 15 tons per person and, amongst the top eight emitters, is the highest country by greenhouse gas emissions per person. However, the IEA estimates that the richest decile in the US emits over 55 tonnes of CO2 per capita each year. Because coal-fired power stations are gradually shutting down, in the 2010s emissions from electricity generation fell to second place behind transportation which is now the largest single source. In 2020, 27% of the GHG emissions of the United States were from transportation, 25% from electricity, 24% from industry, 13% from commercial and residential buildings and 11% from agriculture. In 2021, the electric power sector was the second largest source of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for 25% of the U.S. total. These greenhouse gas emissions are contributing to climate change in the United States, as well as worldwide.
Climate change in Massachusetts affects both urban and rural environments, including forestry, fisheries, agriculture, and coastal development. The Northeast is projected to warm faster than global average temperatures; by 2035, the Northeast is "projected to be more than 3.6°F (2°C) warmer on average than during the preindustrial era."
Challenger is an American brand of agricultural tractors. Created by Caterpillar Inc. in 1986, the brand was sold to AGCO in 2002. Since then, Challenger tractors have been manufactured at the company's Jackson, Minnesota facility.
A plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) is any road vehicle that can utilize an external source of electricity to store electrical energy within its onboard rechargeable battery packs, to power an electric motor and help propelling the wheels. PEV is a subset of electric vehicles, and includes all-electric/battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). Sales of the first series production plug-in electric vehicles began in December 2008 with the introduction of the plug-in hybrid BYD F3DM, and then with the all-electric Mitsubishi i-MiEV in July 2009, but global retail sales only gained traction after the introduction of the mass production all-electric Nissan Leaf and the plug-in hybrid Chevrolet Volt in December 2010.
VIA Motors is an American electric vehicle development and manufacturing company founded in 2010. VIA Motors started out converting GM vehicles into plug-in hybrids (PHEV), but now produces fully electric commercial vehicles for fleet managers. VIA is developing its own skateboard platform for Class 2-5 commercial vehicles, that will enter production in 2024. VIA sells directly to fleets and is taking orders now.
The long tailpipe is an argument stating that usage of electric vehicles does not always result in fewer emissions compared to those from non-electric vehicles. While the argument acknowledges that plug-in electric vehicles operating in all-electric mode have no greenhouse gas emissions from the onboard source of power, it claims that these emissions are shifted from the vehicle tailpipe to the location of the electrical generation plants. From the point of view of a well-to-wheel assessment, the extent of the actual carbon footprint depends on the fuel and technology used for electricity generation, as well as the impact of additional electricity demand on the phase-out of fossil fuel power plants.
A driverless tractor is an autonomous farm vehicle that delivers a high tractive effort at slow speeds for the purposes of tillage and other agricultural tasks. It is considered driverless because it operates without the presence of a human inside the tractor itself. Like other unmanned ground vehicles, they are programmed to independently observe their position, decide speed, and avoid obstacles such as people, animals, or objects in the field while performing their task. The various driverless tractors are split into full autonomous technology and supervised autonomy. The idea of the driverless tractor appears as early as 1940, but the concept has significantly evolved in the last few years. The tractors use GPS and other wireless technologies to farm land without requiring a driver. They operate simply with the aid of a supervisor monitoring the progress at a control station or with a manned tractor in lead.
Driving the Future: Combating Climate Change with Cleaner, Smarter Cars is the first book of Margo T. Oge, who served as the director of the Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Transportation and Air Quality from 1994 to 2012. The book covers climate science, politics, regulations, auto technology and proposes how to meet greenhouse gas reduction goals. The book combines primary source research, Oge's first-hand knowledge of events and dozens of interviews with technical, environmental, regulatory, policy and legal experts. It is organized into three sections.
Electric cars have a smaller environmental footprint than conventional internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs). While aspects of their production can induce similar, less or alternative environmental impacts, they produce little or no tailpipe emissions, and reduce dependence on petroleum, greenhouse gas emissions, and health effects from air pollution. Electric motors are significantly more efficient than internal combustion engines and thus, even accounting for typical power plant efficiencies and distribution losses, less energy is required to operate an EV. Manufacturing batteries for electric cars requires additional resources and energy, so they may have a larger environmental footprint from the production phase. EVs also generate different impacts in their operation and maintenance. EVs are typically heavier and could produce more tire and road dust air pollution, but their regenerative braking could reduce such particulate pollution from brakes. EVs are mechanically simpler, which reduces the use and disposal of engine oil.
Ideanomics, Inc. is a global electric vehicle company that is focused on driving the adoption of electric commercial vehicles and associated sustainable energy consumption. It is made up of 5 subsidiaries including: VIA Motors, Solectrac, Treeletrik, Wave, and US Hybrid. Ideanomics is a CALSTART member, a national non-profit organization focused on accelerating clean transportation; CALSTART's expertise lies in providing early adopters with leadership, connections and funding to accelerate the deployment of game-changing technologies.
Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) is an integrated approach to managing landscapes to help adapt agricultural methods, livestock and crops to the effects of climate change and, where possible, counteract it by reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, at the same time taking into account the growing world population to ensure food security. Thus, the emphasis is not simply on carbon farming or sustainable agriculture, but also on increasing agricultural productivity. "CSA ... is in line with FAO’s vision for Sustainable Food and Agriculture and supports FAO’s goal to make agriculture, forestry and fisheries more productive and more sustainable".
Solectrac is an American tractor manufacturer based in Santa Rosa, California. It manufactures electric tractors for agricultural uses. The tractors are made as a zero-emission alternative to diesel tractors and can be charged by renewable energy, like wind and solar, and provide all the power of a comparable diesel tractor.