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Energy use and life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of drones for commercial package delivery

Author

Listed:
  • Joshuah K. Stolaroff

    (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory)

  • Constantine Samaras

    (Carnegie Mellon University)

  • Emma R. O’Neill

    (SRI International)

  • Alia Lubers

    (University of Colorado at Boulder)

  • Alexandra S. Mitchell

    (SRI International)

  • Daniel Ceperley

    (SRI International
    LeoLabs, Inc.)

Abstract

The use of automated, unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) to deliver commercial packages is poised to become a new industry, significantly shifting energy use in the freight sector. Here we find the current practical range of multi-copters to be about 4 km with current battery technology, requiring a new network of urban warehouses or waystations as support. We show that, although drones consume less energy per package-km than delivery trucks, the additional warehouse energy required and the longer distances traveled by drones per package greatly increase the life-cycle impacts. Still, in most cases examined, the impacts of package delivery by small drone are lower than ground-based delivery. Results suggest that, if carefully deployed, drone-based delivery could reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy use in the freight sector. To realize the environmental benefits of drone delivery, regulators and firms should focus on minimizing extra warehousing and limiting the size of drones.

Suggested Citation

  • Joshuah K. Stolaroff & Constantine Samaras & Emma R. O’Neill & Alia Lubers & Alexandra S. Mitchell & Daniel Ceperley, 2018. "Energy use and life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of drones for commercial package delivery," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 9(1), pages 1-13, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:9:y:2018:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-017-02411-5
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-02411-5
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    Cited by:

    1. Straubinger, Anna & de Groot, Henri L.F. & Verhoef, Erik T., 2023. "E-commerce, delivery drones and their impact on cities," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).
    2. Amine Masmoudi, M. & Mancini, Simona & Baldacci, Roberto & Kuo, Yong-Hong, 2022. "Vehicle routing problems with drones equipped with multi-package payload compartments," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    3. Dukkanci, Okan & Koberstein, Achim & Kara, Bahar Y., 2023. "Drones for relief logistics under uncertainty after an earthquake," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 310(1), pages 117-132.
    4. Cheng, Chun & Adulyasak, Yossiri & Rousseau, Louis-Martin, 2020. "Drone routing with energy function: Formulation and exact algorithm," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 364-387.
    5. Dukkanci, Okan & Campbell, James F. & Kara, Bahar Y., 2024. "Facility location decisions for drone delivery: A literature review," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 316(2), pages 397-418.
    6. Pahwa, Anmol & Jaller, Miguel, 2023. "Assessing last-mile distribution resilience under demand disruptions," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    7. Pina-Pardo, Juan C. & Silva, Daniel F. & Smith, Alice E. & Gatica, Ricardo A., 2024. "Fleet resupply by drones for last-mile delivery," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 316(1), pages 168-182.
    8. Palm, Alvar, 2022. "Innovation systems for technology diffusion: An analytical framework and two case studies," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 182(C).
    9. Zhou, Hang & Qin, Hu & Cheng, Chun & Rousseau, Louis-Martin, 2023. "An exact algorithm for the two-echelon vehicle routing problem with drones," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 168(C), pages 124-150.
    10. Kähler, Svantje T. & Abben, Thomas & Luna-Rodriguez, Aquiles & Tomat, Miriam & Jacobsen, Thomas, 2022. "An assessment of the acceptance and aesthetics of UAVs and helicopters through an experiment and a survey," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    11. Stelian GRASU & Ruxandra Madalina POPP & Marius George POPA, 2023. "Energy Price Liberalization Consequences on Energy Production Market in the European Union," REVISTA DE MANAGEMENT COMPARAT INTERNATIONAL/REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL COMPARATIVE MANAGEMENT, Faculty of Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 24(2), pages 251-260, May.
    12. Hu, Zhangchen & Chen, Heng & Lyons, Eric & Solak, Senay & Zink, Michael, 2024. "Towards sustainable UAV operations: Balancing economic optimization with environmental and social considerations in path planning," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 181(C).
    13. Tom Verstraten & Md Sazzad Hosen & Maitane Berecibar & Bram Vanderborght, 2023. "Selecting Suitable Battery Technologies for Untethered Robot," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(13), pages 1-21, June.
    14. Pahwa, Anmol & Jaller, Miguel, 2022. "A cost-based comparative analysis of different last-mile strategies for e-commerce delivery," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    15. Schmidt, Sebastian & Saraceni, Adriana, 2024. "Consumer acceptance of drone-based technology for last mile delivery," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    16. ElSayed, Mo & Foda, Ahmed & Mohamed, Moataz, 2024. "The impact of civil airspace policies on the viability of adopting autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles in last-mile applications," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 37-54.
    17. Meng, Shanshan & Guo, Xiuping & Li, Dong & Liu, Guoquan, 2023. "The multi-visit drone routing problem for pickup and delivery services," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).

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