Planning charging stations for 2050 to support flexible electric vehicle demand considering individual mobility patterns

Jiaman Wu; Siobhan Powell; Yanyan Xu; Ram Rajagopal; Marta C. Gonzalez

Cell Reports Sustainability (Jan 2024)

Planning charging stations for 2050 to support flexible electric vehicle demand considering individual mobility patterns

Jiaman Wu,
Siobhan Powell,
Yanyan Xu,
Ram Rajagopal,
Marta C. Gonzalez

Affiliations

Jiaman Wu: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Siobhan Powell: Group for Sustainability and Technology, ETH Zurich, Zurich, 8092, Switzerland
Yanyan Xu: MoE Key Laboratory of Artificial Intelligence, AI Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200025, China
Ram Rajagopal: Precourt Institute for Energy, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA; Department of Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
Marta C. Gonzalez: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of City and Regional Planning, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Corresponding author

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 1, no. 1
p. 100006

Abstract

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Summary: With the widespread adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), it is crucial to plan for charging in a way that considers both EV driver behavior and the electricity grid’s demand. Here, we integrate detailed mobility data with empirical charging preferences to estimate charging demand and demonstrate the power of personalized shifting recommendations to move individual EV drivers’ demand on the grid out of peak hours. We find an unbalanced geographical distribution of charging demand in the San Francisco Bay Area, with temporal peaks in both grid off-peak hours in the morning and on-peak hours in the evening. Aligning with mobility patterns, our strategy effectively shifts demand to off-peak times. With the 2050 target of 90% EVs, this shifting reduces total on-peak charging demand by 61%, which could require over ∼18,000 additional level 3 chargers. We recommend building more charging stations and implementing shifting recommendations for EV grid integration. Science for society: The electrification of transportation stands as a promising avenue for emissions reduction. To promote the widespread adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), we need to plan strategically their future charging infrastructure. To that end, we must account for diverse charging habits, mobility patterns, and effective grid management. Our research presents an approach to assess personalized recommendations that adapt charging schedules to alleviate the strain on the grid during its busiest evening hours. Based on data-informed activity patterns, we deploy public charging stations to support this shifted demand. The proposed framework offers strategies to cater to the needs of urban areas facing escalating demands of charging while taking into account the varying levels of EV adoption. Our findings reveal the potential for flexible EV charging scheduling without compromising driver mobility while highlighting the pivotal role of public charging in harnessing this newfound flexibility.

Published in Cell Reports Sustainability

ISSN: 2949-7906 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: United States
LCC subjects: Geography. Anthropology. Recreation: Environmental sciences; Science: Biology (General): Ecology
Website: https://www.cell.com/cell-reports-sustainability/home

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