Vehicle-To-Grid Solutions Could Open Fast Lane To Net-Zero Future
Author: Tim Tyler
According to new research on V2G technology from an MIT team published in the journal Energy Advances, as the number of EVs rises, the collective fleet’s batteries might function as a cost-effective, large-scale energy source, with potentially significant effects on the energy transition. Electric vehicle (EV) owners are used to connecting their electric vehicles to charging ports at home and at work to refuel their batteries with energy from the power grid. These electric vehicles will also be able to reverse the flow and deliver electrons back to the grid when they plug in. The work of the group represents the first comprehensive systems-based analysis of future power systems, and it is founded on a novel combination of computational models that incorporate goals for carbon emission reduction, the production of variable renewable energy (VRE), and the costs related to developing infrastructure for energy storage, production, and transmission. “We explored not just how EVs could provide service back to the grid - thinking of these vehicles almost like energy storage on wheels - but also the value of V2G applications to the entire energy system and if EVs could reduce the cost of decarbonizing the power system,” says Gençer. “The results were surprising; I personally didn’t believe we’d have so much potential here.”