TransForum Vol. 4, No. 4

Argonne "Engineers" Unique Collaboration between the United States and China

China's growth in transportation has been explosive in recent years. In fact, in 2003, China became the next largest oil-consuming country, second only to the United States. To help solve problems associated with this rapid growth, Argonne and the China Automotive Technology and Research Center (CATARC) of the People's Republic of China signed a groundbreaking memorandum of understanding (MOU) on March 9, 2004.

The MOU will officially make it possible for Argonne and CATARC to exchange information that will promote the commercialization of energy-efficient vehicle technologies and clean transportation fuels in China. This unique Argonne-CATARC partnership will benefit the people of China as well as the United States. According to Larry Johnson, Director of Argonne's Transportation Technology Research and Development Center (TTRDC), 'This collaboration is very important because China's a rapidly developing country. In 10 years, China's gone from exporting oil to importing 30% of its oil now. We think it's important for China to have the best understanding of the most energy-efficient technologies in transportation.'

Argonne and DOE will benefit from the partnership because their research strengths and areas of focus — including policy analysis and technology R&D — parallel those of CATARC. In particular, Argonne is looking forward to working with CATARC because of its leading role in the Chinese auto industry, especially in standardization. The benefits of the partnership, however, go far beyond any one country's borders.

For example, oil consumption and emissions are global concerns. Because China is now becoming a major oil importer, the world oil market faces additional strain. If, however, China can improve vehicle efficiencies, it will use less oil and thereby diminish the strain on the world oil market. The MOU will help China find ways to improve vehicle efficiency. The MOU will also address the environmental concerns associated with greenhouse gas emissions in China. Said Argonne's Michael Wang, Manager of the Systems Assessment Section in the Energy Systems Division's Center for Transportation Research, 'greenhouse gas emissions are a global issue, and so we expect that by improving vehicle efficiency, we can decrease those emissions in China as well as in the U.S.' Wang also expects that the experience of the Chinese in improving auto efficiency can help the U.S. auto industry improve efficiency.

Improving fuel efficiency is just one of many challenges facing China. Imagine the cultural, economic, and environmental challenges posed by rapid economic growth in such an extensive and ancient country. For example, because annual income in China has grown, more people need — and can own— cars, which increases the distances people are willing to drive. But rapid growth is not necessarily all good: aged automotive technology and a higher number of vehicles on China's roads are increasing not only oil consumption, but pollution and congestion as well — particularly in China's mega-size cities.

As a result of explosive growth and rapid change, the Chinese auto industry is scrambling to catch up to European and American automotive, environmental, and safety standards. In fact, 'for the first time in 50 years,' said Zhao Hang, president of CATARC, 'China has proposed fuel economy standards.' The MOU will enable Argonne to work with CATARC to advance its knowledge and understanding of the interrelationships among performance, fuel consumption, emissions, and safety of motor vehicles.

Establishing standards is just one goal: meeting them is a larger-scale goal, given the burgeoning Chinese automotive industry (which is partly fueled by major manufacturers outside of China, like General Motors). According to Zhao, 'we expect to see 30% annual growth in auto production in China.' In fact, last year, China produced 4.3 million vehicles — in 2004, Zhao expects to produce more than 5 million vehicles.

And if those numbers aren't impressive enough, consider this: according to Wang, in 2003, China consumed 5.5 million barrels of oil per day (~30% of that was imported), but in 2020, China is expected to consume 10.2 million barrels of oil per day, 60% of which will be imported. 'By comparison, total oil use in the United States today is about 20 million barrels per day,' said Wang. The potential for congestion, pollution, and crowded highways is very significant, given that outlook.

On the bright side, however, China is ideally prepared to adopt alternative vehicles because it must establish infrastructure to handle the demands of future transportation — regardless of the source of fuel. Again, the MOU provides the means to help China explore alternative vehicles. Explained Johnson, 'We have been working on electric vehicles, hybrids, and fuel cell vehicle technology for many years; we have developed capabilities that we think can be helpful to China and specifically to CATARC.'

China's transformation to a major oil consumer is well under way — and has progressed rapidly. Now that the paper infrastructure between Argonne and CATARC is in place, Argonne expects China to continue to move quickly in developing improved automotive and environmental control technology. 'Don't be surprised,' said Johnson, 'if China is someday meeting some fairly impressive standards in terms of renewable energy and automotive technology.' The world will be watching.

CATARC was established in 1985 as a scientific research institute focusing on automotive safety, emissions control, energy conservation, and science and technology research. CATARC is supported by the state and affiliated with the China National Automotive Industry Corporation. The award-winning organization has become China's leading automotive research organization.

	Representatives from DOE, Argonne, and CATARC look on as Larry Johnson and Zhao Hang sign this groundbreaking agreement.
	Larry Johnson and Zhao Hang

September 22, 2004