A consortium of British companies has secured £1.3 million in government funding to explore how electricity stored in EV batteries can be used to smooth out peaks in supply and demand on the electricity grid.
Solar car park specialist 3ti is leading the V2X Fast Hub project funded by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and delivered by Innovate UK. The project is setting out to integrate bi-directional DC charging and the associated power management systems into Papilio3, a pop-up solar car park and EV charging hub. The firm said:
This will be a watershed moment for future energy security, providing a clear pathway to help resolve the issue of intermittent supply from renewables by using EV batteries as grid assets.
The project consortium comprises 3ti, EV power solutions provider Turbo Power Systems (TPS), smart energy company GridBeyond, and EV and decarbonisation specialist Cenex, in a 17-month collaboration, including a six-month real-world demonstration.
The Papilio3 is a smart grid ‘in-a-box’ that can host up to 12 EVs at a time, specially adapted as a V2X FastHub unit for the project. It is housed within an upcycled, rapidly deployable shipping container, with a solar canopy and energy storage battery.
For this application, it will feature a new DC microgrid system – integrating three times faster, bi-directional DC EV charge points with a 280 kWh integral battery storage system and 20 kWp solar roof array. It will be controlled by an Energy Management System (EMS). Cenex will host the vehicle trial, which will include the procurement of the trial vehicle fleet, data capture, analysis and final report to Innovate UK.
Through a ‘charge-as-a-service’ business rental model, the unit simplifies installation and reduces up-front costs – or the need for long-term commitment, 3ti says.
Mark Potter, CTO at 3ti, said:
Everybody wants more EVs on the grid. They represent a massive scale, distributed energy resource that can be used to balance real-time supply and demand. This project will prove that bi-directional EV charging can work in the real world. Connected EVs will be teamed together to act as virtual power and energy storage facilities, with each car releasing and replenishing its stored energy according to user preferences and grid demand. This generates income and cost savings, which can be passed on to our customers.
He added:
Being able to recharge at 30 kW is critical to success in this market. In destination charging, most EVs will only charge at 7 or 11 kW using AC, even if the charge point is rated at 22 kW. Being able to charge at 30 kW regardless of vehicle limitations makes more energy available for V2X export without impacting the overall net charge.
Micheal Phelan, CEO at GridBeyond, said:
We are delighted to be participating in this innovative, groundbreaking project which will help demonstrate the potential of vehicle to grid technology and how it can help support a low carbon grid of the future.
