Electric vehicle drivers may breathe polluted air when they get a quick fill-up at a high-power charging station, according to a new study.
The counterintuitive finding — that charging stations meant to replace fossil fuels can themselves “pose localized air quality risks” — needs further study and may prompt changes to charging-station design, the study authors concluded.
What causes the pollution is likely not the charging station itself, but the toxic dust kicked up by the nearby power cabinet as it tries to cool itself off. That dust comes from friction of tires on asphalt and from auto brakes, the study said.
The research was carried out by public-health and engineering scientists from the University of California at Los Angeles in early 2024. The results were published this month in the journal Environment International.
