What is the cost road transport on air quality and subsequently respiratory health complications?

Research Proposal
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Research Proposal
Research question
What is the cost road transport on air quality and subsequently respiratory health complications?
Proposal
Air pollution is a global problem that is closely associated with human activities and the impacts are directed on the humans. Transport is a vital pillar of any economy, however, it is also one of the highest contributing sources of pollution. Vehicles form the largest quota of the transport system. Most of the vehicles use internal combustion engines which use petroleum products for propulsion. While the technology in the industry has led to more efficient and effective engines, the level of pollution is still significantly high. In the past, most of the companies concentrated on power rather than efficiency. Today manufacturers have to make sure the engines have reduced emissions. The exhaust fumes are a combination of several poisonous gases including carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. Air pollution has detrimental implications on the human health and the environment. One of the main interventions that have been introduced in the market in the recent years is the electric cars (sierraclub.org, 2016). This is targeted at reducing the carbon footprint of the transport system (Cosier, 2012). While, this is an intervention that can be considered as a solution it is important to determine if it is sustainable. While the cars reduce the use of gasoline, they also increase the use of electricity which in turn puts pressure on the natural resources (Gitlin, 2006). As such the research question on this paper is evaluating the sustainability of the electric cars as environmentally friendly (Tonachel, 2015).
Outline
1. Air pollution
1.1 Air quality
1.2 Impacts of air pollution on health
1.3 Impacts of air pollution on the environment
2. Transport as a source of pollution
2.1 Fossil fuels
2.2 Pollutants from incomplete combustion
3. Electric cars reduce air pollution
3.1 Electric motors
3.2 Clean energy
3.3 Zero emissions
3.4 Tesla
4. Electric cars sustainability
4.1 The future of transportation
Research question
Can sustainable energy sources match population growth and relative demand?
Proposal
As the population growth maintains an exponential trend, the demand for energy is also rising (Abelard.org, 2016). Much of the energy is sourced from nuclear reactors, diesel generators and hydraulic generators. All the energy generation mechanisms rely on the natural resources. This means that as population grows, the strain on the resources increases. Over the years as the pollution increased, the demand for energy has also grown. This has led to most of the oil reserves becoming exhausted (Zabel, 2009). As a result, oil companies are constantly exploring for more reserves in the dwindling resources (Fisher, 2012). This has in turn put a lot of pressure on the natural resources along with detrimental environment impacts (Fisher, 2012). Different nations have different energy demands relative to their level of industrialization. The USA for example uses more than 20% of the world energy even though its population is around 5% of the global population (Fisher, 2012). The strain ...