What steps can be taken to monitor energy grid stability as electric vehicles (EVs) continue to be adopted worldwide? This is what a recent study published in Green Energy and Intelligent Transportation hopes to address as a pair of researchers from India investigated the economic impact of EVs worldwide. This study has the potential to help researchers, engineers, and the public better understand the long-term impacts of EVs on worldwide economies and energy grids and the steps that can be taken to cushion these impacts.
For the study, the researchers used a series of computer models to simulate supply and demand of EV energy needs ranging from maximum potential energy consumption to minimum energy consumption. The simulations evaluated EV energy demands versus regular energy demand with the goal of ascertaining the economic and social costs of EV energy grid demand. In the end, the researchers found that incorporating social costs into EV impact resulted in a decrease in CO2 emissions by approximately 82,000 tons. Additionally, they found that maximum and minimum EV charging demand resulted in shortages of 4 percent and 32 percent of demand, respectively.
"Our research demonstrates that while EV adoption is crucial for decarbonization, it must be carefully balanced with grid capacity planning," said Dr. Malolan Sundararaman from the National Institute of Technology in India and lead author of the study. "Without proper integration strategies, the additional demand from EVs could undermine the stability of renewable energy-dominated systems."
This study comes as the number of EVs across the United States and the world reached approximately 1.5 million and 17.8 million units in 2024, respectively. Therefore, studies like this can help recognize the risks for energy demands that EVs could pose in the future.
What economic and energy grid impacts will EVs continue to make in the coming years and decades? Only time will tell, and this is why we science!
As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!
Sources: Green Energy and Intelligent Transportation, EurekAlert!