Plug-ins could require new 160 power plants to be built... or none at all
Studies have been performed that indicate that there is enough excess electricity already being produced to charge a nation of electric cars. One hitch to that plan, though, is that it requires people to charge their vehicles while they sleep, during "off-peak" hours. For this reason, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory ran some numbers and found that the worst-case daytime charging scenario could require up to 160 new power plants to be erected nationwide. Their projected best-case scenario includes people only charging their cars after 10:00 pm and may not require any new power plants at all. That's a huge spread, of course, and we'd expect to see reality set in somewhere in between those two extremes. Of course, it would be great to see a large number of people choose to purchase renewable power, either from their utility or using solar cells or wind generators of their own. It is impossible at this point to know how consumers will react to electric cars being available on the market, but now is the time to start planning, so we're happy to see reports like this one being conducted.
[Source: ORNL via Science Daily]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Nathaniel Sears 6:10PM (3/13/2008)
All of this data is only speculation until we have the option to drive these cars.
Reply
Tim 5:44PM (3/13/2008)
Charging during the day is the perfect for solar and the night is perfect for wind. It will take well over 20 YEARS to turn the fleet and look how far BOTH technologies have come in the last 2.
Let's learn to crawl before worrying about winning that marathon, OK?
Reply
BlackbirdHighway 6:51PM (3/13/2008)
The Tesla home charger already has a timer so you can set it to start the charging process when the nighttime rates kick in.
Reply
GoodCheer 9:41PM (3/13/2008)
Actually I think best case scenario is that LESS generation capacity will be required if V2G can be widely implemented. The energy storage afforded by all those batteries in all those cars could be a powerful tool for "peak shaving" and "ancillary services"... responding to fluctuations in demand on the day and minute timescales.
Reply
sensitive_man 10:05PM (3/13/2008)
Don't forget all the power saved by not having to operate those gas stations.
Reply
DS 12:16PM (3/14/2008)
This "Study" comes out of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Has it occurred to anyone that they may have a bias to promote coal power Plants.
Reply
jake 10:31PM (3/13/2008)
@GoodCheer
Well not many people would want to sign up for V2G because of extra degration on the battery, which is still expensive so far. But the timer that blackbirdhighway mentioned can serve similar function by not charging during peak hours except if urgent. There can even be communication between the charging and the power company, this will help level the load, without wearing down the user's battery. The user benefits from lower off-peak rates.
The biggest worry so far is everyone charging their cars when they are all going to work, which might happen if they travel more than 40-50 miles round trip, since most PHEVs today have that kind of range.
Kind of the same thing I mentioned, the article mentions this: "There are also technologies such as 'smart' chargers that know the price of power, the demands on the system and the time when the car will be needed next to optimize charging for both the owner and the utility that can help too." I think these smart chargers should be standard on PHEVs so that we won't have to build new powerplants. It's completely doable too in this internet age.
Reply
Aimless 2:30AM (3/14/2008)
Its common practice for power companies to "ask" heavy users (like steal works) to turn it down a bit, when the river (coolant water feed) gets too hot in summer.
Given the proper incentive and automated systems, consumers will be perfectly happy to do something similar. Like delaying that battery charger and washing machine, spinning up the stirling water heater, even switching the PHEV/V2G into generator mode for an hour. And medium sized companies just might do their monthly backup generator test.
So there are options enough to overcome those windless overcast days, when renewables don't work. The producers just have to be willing to make it feasible.
Reply
rgseidl 3:35AM (3/14/2008)
Given the great expense of EVs relative to performance and range, it's important that other costs are minimized early on or the industry won't get off the ground at all.
That means setting things up such that no additional power plants or grid upgrades - including V2G control infrastructure - is required up front, though it should be an option. Consumers who wish to use renewable electricity and are prepared to pay the associated premium can do so already in some locations. High prices for fossil energy, pressure to sequester carbon (incl. intensive algaculture) will reduce the premium.
The following video documents how tight computer-controlled co-ordination between solar PV, wind, hydro and biogas could reliably meet all of Germany's electricity needs 365/24/7 without any coal or nuclear plants.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5395558572078423346&q=biogas+solar&total=19&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0
To make such long-term transitions possible, the focus should be on trickle-feeding EVs at discount rates during the night. This is fairly trivial to implement if you have a private garage or carport. However, if you live in an apartment and need to park your vehicle in a publicly accessible spot, things get much more complicated: all-weather safety, authorization to connect, billing, premature disconnection by unauthorized persons and outright vandalism all need to be addressed and codified in a technical standard that can be implemented at reasonable cost. Conforming outlets could also be used to recharge electric bicycles during daylight hours.
As a stopgap measure, owners of apartment complexes and employers could choose to turn some of their publicly accessible parking spots into private ones by installing fences with locks. This would also reduce theft risk and associated insurance rates: thieves are already drilling holes into SUV gas tanks to pilfer fuel, imagine how far they would go to steal Li-ion battery packs once there is a market for them.
Reply
rgseidl 4:09AM (3/14/2008)
Addendum:
in locations where hydro reservoirs are not available, wind turbines can be used to compress air that is buffered in accumulators (or an underground void, if available). When needed, this air is used to run special, relatively small gas turbines that can regulate the fraction of shaft power spent on boost compression under load with an efficient automatic transmission. If the stored air is at high enough pressure, no boost is needed at all. If the buffer is empty, ambient air is used instead and the transmission is locked up at a ratio of unity. The fuel for all this could be biogas.
Reply
Rick 10:24AM (3/14/2008)
#1-Tim- THANK YOU!! Duh, why get a plug-in only to recharge it with electricity?! If I were the type to get a plug-in car, I'd have a solar charging station/charger unit of some kind. I don't understand the disconnect.
Reply
Richard 12:00PM (3/14/2008)
From what I understand solar panels are going to become much more affordable in the real near future, and that will offset needed production from the power plant, either at night or daytime. So, I don't think that this will even be an issue.
Reply