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http://hdl.handle.net/1942/26285
Title: | The lock-in effect and the greening of automotive cooling systems in the European Union | Authors: | Bjornavold, Amalie VAN PASSEL, Steven |
Issue Date: | 2017 | Publisher: | ACADEMIC PRESS LTD- ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD | Source: | JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, 203, p. 1199-1207 | Abstract: | As of 2017, the sale and use of the refrigerants most commonly used in automotive cooling systems - hydrofluorocarbons - are entirely banned in all new vehicles placed on the market in the European Union. These refrigerants have been recognised as potent greenhouse gases and, therefore, direct contributors to climate change. It is within this regulation-driven market that the technologies for a sustainable solution have been developed. However, this paper argues that the market for automotive cooling systems has been 'locked-in', which means that competing technologies, operating under dynamic increasing returns, will allow for one - potentially inferior technology - to dominate the market. Whilst such a situation is not uncommon, this paper discusses the way that regulation has reinforced a patented monopoly in 'picking winners': to the advantage of a synthetic chemical, R-1234yf, as opposed to the natural solution, which is CO2. By developing a generic conceptual framework of path dependence and lock-in, the presented evidence seeks to show how a snowballing effect has led to the intensification of differences in market share. We also argue that the automotive industry is potentially promoting short-term fixes, rather than long-term, sustainable and economically viable solutions. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. | Notes: | [Bjornavold, Amalie; Van Passel, Steven] Univ Antwerp, Dept Engn Management, Fac Appl Econ, Prinsstr 13, B-2000 Antwerp, Belgium. [Van Passel, Steven] Univ Hasselt, Ctr Environm Sci, Campus Diepenbeek,Agoralaan D, B-3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium. | Keywords: | Mobile air conditioning; Automotive cooling; Path dependence; Lock-in; Climate change;mobile air conditioning; automotive cooling; path dependence; lock-in; climate change | Document URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/1942/26285 | ISSN: | 0301-4797 | e-ISSN: | 1095-8630 | DOI: | 10.1016/j.jenvman.2017.06.010 | ISI #: | 000413886300035 | Rights: | © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. | Category: | A1 | Type: | Journal Contribution | Validations: | ecoom 2018 |
Appears in Collections: | Research publications |
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bjornavold 1.pdf Restricted Access | Published version | 521.82 kB | Adobe PDF | View/Open Request a copy |
Bjornavold.2017.pdf | Peer-reviewed author version | 414.94 kB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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