Mobile battery-integrated charging station for reducing electric vehicles charging queue and cost via renewable energy curtailment recovery

Today, charging electric vehicles (EVs) from the utility grid has resulted in high electricity costs besides enhanced emissions. On the other hand, increased renewable energy penetration has caused curtailing a considerable share of the produced energy. This paper aims at bridging the gap between these challenges utilizing mobile charging stations (MCS). Integrated with battery energy storage, the MCS shifts the curtailed renewable energy spatially and temporally for EV charging. To this end, a novel model is proposed for joint MCS spatio-temporal status and battery power-energy scheduling in the presence of fixed charging stations (FCSs). Besides, a new paradigm is introduced for EV charging management and queuing in both MCS and FCS. The excess curtailed renewable energy is stored in the MCS battery for EV charging later and at a different location. The numerical testing of the model denotes a 9.63% reduction in the daily operation cost. Besides, wind and solar energy curtailment are reduced by 15.60% and 54.60%, respectively. Additionally, the EV charging queue represents a 90% reduction while FCS empty sockets increase by 80%. The benefits for the grid include peak shaving, improved voltages, and increased renewable penetration.

Automated summary

This study proposes a solution to high electricity costs and renewable energy waste by utilizing mobile charging stations, with a novel model for spatio-temporal status and battery power-energy scheduling.