Cross-Country Comparison of Hourly Electricity Mixes for EV Charging Profiles

Electric vehicles, when coupled to electricity generation from renewable energy sources, can become a viable solution to decarbonize the transport sector. However, given the high variability of electricity mixes on a daily and seasonal basis, high-resolution profiles are needed for a precise analysis of the impacts of electric vehicles in terms of greenhouse gases emissions. This paper presents a comparison of different charging profiles evaluated on 10 European countries over four years, to highlight the effects of national electricity mixes and of the type of charging location on the specific emissions of EVs charging. This study, based on three archetypal charging profiles, provide a quantification of the potential influence of different charging strategies on the average emission factor of the electricity supplied to electric vehicles. The results show that the variability related to charging profiles is generally limited, with an average variation range of 6% for any given country and year, while in several countries the variability from one year to another is much larger, with an average range of 18% for any given country and charging profile.

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Modelling Stochastic Electricity Demand of Electric Vehicles Based on Traffic Surveys—The Case of Austria

Energies ◽

10.3390/en14061577 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (6) ◽

pp. 1577

Author(s):

Albert Hiesl ◽

Jasmine Ramsebner ◽

Reinhard Haas

Keyword(s):

Electric Vehicles ◽

Renewable Energy Sources ◽

Length Distribution ◽

Electricity Demand ◽

Transport Sector ◽

Trip Purpose ◽

Entire Country ◽

Electricity Load ◽

The Individual ◽

Model Based Analysis

Battery-powered electric mobility is currently the most promising technology for the decarbonisation of the transport sector, alongside hydrogen-powered vehicles, provided that the electricity used comes 100% from renewable energy sources. To estimate its electricity demand both nationwide and in individual smaller communities, a calculation based assessment on driving profiles that are as realistic as possible is required. The developed model based analysis presented in this paper for the creation of driving and thus electricity load profiles makes it possible to build different compositions of driving profiles. The focus of this paper lies in the analysis of motorised private transport, which makes it possible to assess future charging and load control potentials in a subsequent analysis. We outline the differences in demand and driving profiles for weekdays as well as for Saturdays, Sundays and holidays in general. Furthermore, the modelling considers the length distribution of the individual trips per trip purpose and different start times. The developed method allows to create individual driving and electric vehicle (EV) demand profiles as well as averaged driving profiles, which can then be scaled up and analysed for an entire country.

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Exploring Factors that Influence Individuals’ Choice Between Internal Combustion Engine Cars and Electric Vehicles

AGILE: GIScience Series ◽

10.5194/agile-giss-1-2-2020 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 1 ◽

pp. 1-23

Author(s):

Dominik Bucher ◽

Henry Martin ◽

Jannik Hamper ◽

Atefeh Jaleh ◽

Henrik Becker ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Internal Combustion Engine ◽

Electric Vehicle ◽

Electric Vehicles ◽

Choice Model ◽

Combustion Engine ◽

Renewable Energy Sources ◽

Internal Combustion ◽

Transport Sector ◽

Wide Range ◽

Range Anxiety

Abstract. The adoption of electric vehicles has the potential to help decarbonizing the transport sector if they are powered by renewable energy sources. Limitations commonly associated with e-cars are their comparatively short ranges and long recharging cycles, leading to anxiety when having to travel long distances. Other factors such as temperature, destination or weekday may influence people in choosing an e-car for a certain trip. Using a unique dataset of 129 people who own both an electric vehicle (EV) as well as one powered by an internal combustion engine (ICE), we analyze tracking data over a year in order to have an empirically verified choice model. Based on a wide range of predictors, this model tells us for an individual journey if the person would rather choose the EV or the ICE car. Our findings show that there are only weak relations between the predictor and target variables, indicating that for many people the switch to an e-car would not affect their lifestyle and the related range anxiety diminishes when actually owning an electric vehicle. In addition, we find that choice behavior does not generalize well over different users.

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Sizing, Optimization, and Financial Analysis of a Green Hydrogen Refueling Station in Remote Regions

Energies ◽

10.3390/en15020547 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 547

Author(s):

Kosmas A. Kavadias ◽

Vasileios Kosmas ◽

Stefanos Tzelepis

Keyword(s):

Fossil Fuels ◽

Financial Analysis ◽

Renewable Energy Sources ◽

Electrical Energy ◽

Energy Carrier ◽

Transport Sector ◽

Optimum Configuration ◽

Viable Solution ◽

Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles ◽

Wind Park

Hydrogen (H2) can be a promising energy carrier for decarbonizing the economy and especially the transport sector, which is considered as one of the sectors with high carbon emissions due to the extensive use of fossil fuels. H2 is a nontoxic energy carrier that could replace fossil fuels. Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs) can decrease air pollution and reduce greenhouse gases when H2 is produced from Renewable Energy Sources (RES) and at the same time being accessible through a widespread network of Hydrogen Refueling Stations (HRSs). In this study, both the sizing of the equipment and financial analysis were performed for an HRS supplied with H2 from the excess electrical energy of a 10 MW wind park. The aim was to determine the optimum configuration of an HRS under the investigation of six different scenarios with various numbers of FCEVs and monthly demands, as well as ascertaining the economic viability of each examined scenario. The effect of the number of vehicles that the installation can refuel to balance the initial cost of the investment and the fuel cost in remote regions was investigated. The results showed that a wind-powered HRS could be a viable solution when sized appropriately and H2 can be used as a storage mean for the rejected wind energy. It was concluded that scenarios with low FCEVs penetration have low economic performance since the payback period presented significantly high values.

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Power usage in the transport sector – potential, costs and greenhouse gas abatement of different well-to-wheel pathways

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-3399 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Markus Millinger ◽

Philip Tafarte ◽

Matthias Jordan ◽

Alena Hahn ◽

Kathleen Meisel ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Renewable Energy ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Electric Vehicles ◽

Fossil Fuels ◽

Renewable Energy Sources ◽

Ghg Emissions ◽

Energy System ◽

Transport Sector ◽

Greenhouse Gas Abatement ◽

Surplus Power

The increase of variable renewable energy sources (VRE), i.e. wind and solar power, may lead to a certain mismatch between power demand and supply. At the same time, in order to decarbonise the heat and transport sectors, power-based solutions are often seen as promising option, through so-called sector coupling. At times when VRE power supply exceeds demand, the surplus power could be used for producing liquid and gaseous electrofuels. The power is used for electrolysis, producing hydrogen, which can in turn be used either directly or combined with a carbon source to produce hydrocarbon fuels.Here, we analyse the potential development of surplus power for the case of Germany, at an ambitious VRE expansion until 2050 and perform a cost analysis of electrofuels at different production levels using sorted residual load curves. These are then compared to biofuels and electric vehicles with the aid of an optimisation model, considering both cost- and greenhouse gas (GHG)-optimal options for the main transport sectors in Germany.We find that, although hydrocarbon electrofuels are more expensive than their main renewable competitors, i.e. biofuels, they are most likely indispensable in addition for reaching climate targets in transport. However, the electrofuel potential is constrained by the availability of both surplus power and carbon. In fact, the surplus power potential is projected to remain limited even at currently ambitious VRE targets for Germany and carbon availability is lower in an increasingly renewable energy system unless direct air capture is deployed. In addition, as the power mix is likely to contain fossil fuels for decades to come, electrofuels based on power directly from the mix with associated conversion losses would cause higher GHG-emissions than the fossil transport fuel reference until a very high share of renewables in the power source is achieved. In contrast, electric vehicles are a more climate competitive option under the projected power mix with remaining fossil fuel fractions, due to a superior fuel economy and thereby lower costs and emissions.As part of the assessment, we quantify the greenhouse gas abatement costs for different well-to-wheel pathways and provide an analysis and recommendations for a transition to sustainable transport.

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Electric Vehicles and Biofuels Synergies in the Brazilian Energy System

Energies ◽

10.3390/en13174423 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (17) ◽

pp. 4423 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Géremi Gilson Dranka ◽

Paula Ferreira

Keyword(s):

Power Systems ◽

Co2 Emissions ◽

Electric Vehicles ◽

Large Scale ◽

Renewable Energy Sources ◽

Energy System ◽

Electricity Production ◽

Transport Sector ◽

Transportation Sector ◽

The Impact

Shaping a secure and sustainable energy future may require a set of transformations in the global energy sector. Although several studies have recognized the importance of Electric Vehicles (EVs) for power systems, no large-scale studies have been performed to assess the impact of this technology in energy systems combining a diverse set of renewable energies for electricity production and biofuels in the transportation sector such as the case of Brazil. This research makes several noteworthy contributions to the current literature, including not only the evaluation of the main impacts of EVs’ penetration in a renewable electricity system but also a Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) that estimates the overall level of CO2 emissions resulted from the EVs integration. Findings of this study indicated a clear positive effect of increasing the share of EVs on reducing the overall level of CO2 emissions. This is, however, highly dependent on the share of Renewable Energy Sources (RES) in the power system and the use of biofuels in the transport sector but also on the credits resulting from the battery recycling materials credit and battery reuse credit. Our conclusions underline the importance of such studies in providing support for the governmental discussions regarding potential synergies in the use of bioresources between transport and electricity sectors.

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Electric Vehicle and Renewable Energy Sources: Motor Fusion in the Energy Transition from a Multi-Indicator Perspective

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13063430 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (6) ◽

pp. 3430

Author(s):

Isabel C. Gil-García ◽

Mª Socorro García-Cascales ◽

Habib Dagher ◽

Angel Molina-García

Keyword(s):

Electric Vehicles ◽

Emission Reduction ◽

Renewable Energy Sources ◽

Energy Transition ◽

Renewable Resource ◽

Transport Sector ◽

Low Carbon ◽

Renewable Integration ◽

Conventional Vehicle ◽

Reduce Emissions

Energy transition requires actions from different sectors and levels, mainly focused on achieving a low-carbon and high-renewable integration society. Among the different sectors, the transport sector is responsible for more than 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions, mostly emitted in cities. Therefore, initiatives and analysis focused on electric vehicles integration powered by renewables is currently a desirable solution to mitigate climate change and promote energy transition. Under this framework, this paper proposes a multi-indicator analysis for the estimation of CO2 emissions combining renewable integration targets, reduction emission targets and realistic renewable resource potentials. Four scenarios are identified and analyzed: (i) current situation with conventional vehicles, (ii) replacement of such conventional by electric vehicles without renewable integration, (iii) and (iv) integration of renewables to fulfill emission reduction targets for 2030 and 2050 respectively. The analysis is evaluated in the state of Maine (United States). From the results, a minimum renewable penetration of 39% and 82%, respectively, is needed to fulfill the emission reduction targets for 2030 and 2050 by considering 100% conventional vehicle replacement. Different combinations of available renewable resources can reduce emissions by more than 35%.

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The Synergies of Shared Autonomous Electric Vehicles with Renewable Energy in a Virtual Power Plant and Microgrid

Energies ◽

10.3390/en11082016 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 11 (8) ◽

pp. 2016 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Riccardo Iacobucci ◽

Benjamin McLellan ◽

Tetsuo Tezuka

Keyword(s):

Renewable Energy ◽

Power Plant ◽

Electric Vehicles ◽

Large Scale ◽

Renewable Energy Sources ◽

Transport Sector ◽

Virtual Power ◽

Virtual Power Plant ◽

Vehicle Charging ◽

Autonomous Electric Vehicles

The introduction of shared autonomous electric vehicles (SAEVs), expected within the next decade, can transform the car into a service, accelerate electrification of the transport sector, and allow for large scale control of electric vehicle charging. In this work, we investigate the potential for this system to provide aggregated storage when combined with intermittent renewable energy sources. We develop a simulation methodology for the optimization of vehicle charging in the context of a virtual power plant or microgrid, with and without grid connection or distributed dispatchable generators. The model considers aggregate storage availability from vehicles based on transport patterns taking into account the necessary vehicle redistribution. We investigate the case of a grid-connected VPP with rooftop solar and the case of a isolated microgrid with solar, wind, and dispatchable generation. We conduct a comprehensive sensitivity analysis to study the effect of several parameters on the results for both cases.

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Design and Simulation of Romanian Solar Energy Charging Station for Electric Vehicles

Energies ◽

10.3390/en12010074 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

pp. 74 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Gheorghe Badea ◽

Raluca-Andreea Felseghi ◽

Mihai Varlam ◽

Constantin Filote ◽

Mihai Culcer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Solar Energy ◽

Electric Vehicles ◽

Renewable Resources ◽

Clean Energy ◽

Energy System ◽

Photovoltaic System ◽

Transport Sector ◽

Charging Station ◽

One Year ◽

Main Components

Since mid 2010, petrol consumption in the transport sector has increased at a higher rate than in other sectors. The transport sector generates 35% of the total CO2 emissions. In this context, strategies have been adopted to use clean energy, with electromobility being the main directive. This paper examines the possibility of charging electric vehicle batteries with clean energy using solar autochthonous renewable resources. An isolated system was designed, dimensioned, and simulated in operation for a charging station for electric vehicles with photovoltaic panels and batteries as their main components. The optimal configuration of the photovoltaic system was complete with improved Hybrid Optimization by Genetic Algorithms (iHOGA) software version 2.4 and we simulated its operation. The solar energy system has to be designed to ensure that the charging station always has enough electricity to supply several electric vehicles throughout all 24 h of the day. The main results were related to the energy, environmental, and economic performance achieved by the system during one year of operation.

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Renewable energy systems implementation in road transport: prospects and impediments

Renewable Energy and Environmental Sustainability ◽

10.1051/rees/2021042 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 6 ◽

pp. 39

Author(s):

Amela Ajanovic ◽

Reinhard Haas

Keyword(s):

Renewable Energy ◽

Electric Vehicles ◽

Renewable Energy Sources ◽

Energy Systems ◽

Road Transport ◽

Transport Sector ◽

Special Focus ◽

Major Barrier ◽

Renewable Energy Systems ◽

The Future

The transport sector accounts for about one quarter of the global carbon dioxide emissions. It is dominated by fossil fuels, leading to different negative impacts on humans and the environment. Over the last years, interest in alternative automotive powertrains such as different types of electric vehicles as well as low-carbon fuels has been increasing. The main objective of this paper is to provide review of the current state of the major renewable energy systems in road transport focusing on the EU. Based on a detailed literature review, the major prospects and impediments for the future use of biofuels, renewable electricity and green hydrogen in road transport are discussed considering policies implemented, as well as emission reduction targets set for the future with a special focus on passenger car transport. The major conclusions are: (i) The prospects of biofuels depend on their future economic and environmental performance as well as on land availability and the food versus tank discussion. (ii) The high investment costs of battery- and fuel cell electric vehicles are still a major barrier for their faster market penetration but they could be reduced in future due to technological learning. In addition, their contribution to the reduction of global greenhouse gas emissions is achievable only in combination with the increasing use of renewable energy sources in electricity generation.

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Assessing Commuting Energy and Emissions Savings through Remote Working and Carpooling: Lessons from an Italian Region

Energies ◽

10.3390/en14217177 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (21) ◽

pp. 7177

Author(s):

Michel Noussan ◽

Matteo Jarre

Keyword(s):

Transport Sector ◽

Supply Side ◽

Detailed Data ◽

Italian Region ◽

Car Use ◽

Passenger Demand ◽

Greenhouse Gases Emissions ◽

Specific Emissions ◽

Commuting Distances ◽

Occupancy Rates

Effective solutions are needed to decrease the greenhouse gases emissions of the transport sector, not only in terms of supply-side measures, but also including demand-side solutions. This paper focuses on the passenger demand related to daily commuting, either for work or study purposes. A bottom-up analysis is presented, which draws from detailed data for Lombardy, the most populous region in Northern Italy, to build an estimate of the annual energy consumption and emissions related to commuting. The potential of different measures to decrease emissions is evaluated, including the renovation of the vehicle stock, higher levels of remote working, and the deployment of carpooling schemes. The results show that the largest part of the current emissions from commuting is caused by car use, both due to its higher modal share and to the higher specific emissions, which are in turn also contributed by the low occupancy rates. The renewal of the current vehicle stock can lead to significant emission savings, thanks to both improved efficiency and higher shares of electrification. Remote working could also play a significant part, especially when it is applied to workers that face the longest commuting distances. Conversely, carpooling seems to be providing lower benefits, not so much because of lower effectiveness but more so because of constraints and barriers to its implementation.

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