As the electrification of the transportation sector advances, fleet operators have to rethink their approach regarding fleet management against the background of limiting factors, such as a reduced range or extended recharging times. Charging infrastructure plays a critical role, and it is worthwhile to consider its planning as an integral part for the long-term operation of an electric vehicle fleet. In the category of fixed route transportation systems, the predictable character of the routes can be exploited when planning charging infrastructure. After a prior categorization of stakeholders and their respective optimization objectives in the sector coupling domain, a cost optimization framework for fixed route transportation systems is presented as the main contribution of this work. We confirm previous literature in that there is no one-fits-all optimization method for this kind of problem. The method is tested on seven scenarios for the public transport operator of Darmstadt, Germany. The core optimization is formulated as a mixed integer linear programming (MILP) problem. All scenarios are terminated by the criterion of a maximum solving time of 48 h and provide feasible solutions with a relative MIP-gap between 7 and 24%. Full article

Photovoltaic charging stations (PVCSs) are one of the most important pieces of charging equipment for electric vehicles (EVs). Recently, the process of designing solar charging stations as flexible sources has been growing and developing. This paper presents a relatively complete design of a solar charging station as a flexible economic resource in a 10-year planning horizon based on a genetic algorithm in two scenarios. PVCSs are not considered in the first scenario. This scenario is only to confirm the results, and the proposed method is proposed. However, in the second scenario, the effects of PVCSs and the demand response strategy (DR) on this development are considered. Copula probability distribution functions are used to create appropriate scenarios for vehicles during different planning years. The proposed energy management system shows a stable performance in terms of the annual load growth index and electricity price of each level of demand over the time horizon along with minimizing power losses and costs required, which makes PVCS efficiency higher and gives them a suitable structure and stability. The modeling results in terms of uncertainties in the system indicate that the use of load management along with PVCS design and flexible electric vehicle charge control strategies improves power quality parameters and optimizes system cost over a period of 10 years. Compared to the obtained results with the traditional case, it is observed that long-term planning in terms of DR and PVCSs and the technical specifications of the network have been improved. As a result of this proposed long-term planning, PVCSs are more flexible. Full article

Electric vehicles (EVs) were introduced into the South African market in 2013, and their adoption rate has been very low. There are limited existing studies covering consumer perceptions towards EVs in Africa and, thus, this study investigated possible socio-economic barriers present in the South African automotive market that impede the adoption or consumer purchase intention of EVs. The survey was conducted in the Gauteng Province in South Africa using questionnaires comprised of Likert-type questions. The analysis was conducted using statistical methods comprising mainly of frequency tables and Chi-squared tests on contingency tables. The findings of the study on barriers to adoption of EVs in the market highlighted the high purchase price, high battery price, and high likelihood for owning a secondary vehicle based on the current circumstances as the main purchase intention barriers that the respondents in the Gauteng Province accentuated. However, generally the willingness to buy EVs was high for a majority of the factors that were presented. With these perceived positive opinions from respondents, it is down to government and private companies to provide a conducive environment for the consumers. Full article

The global market of electric vehicles has become one of the prime growth industries of the 21st century fueled by marketing efforts, which frequently assert that electric vehicles are “very efficient” and “produce no pollution.” This article uses thermodynamic analysis to determine the primary energy needs for the propulsion of electric vehicles and applies the energy/exergy trade-offs between hydrocarbons and electricity propulsion of road vehicles. The well-to-wheels efficiency of electric vehicles is comparable to that of vehicles with internal combustion engines. Heat transfer to or from the cabin of the vehicle is calculated to determine the additional energy for heating and air-conditioning needs, which must be supplied by the battery, and the reduction of the range of the vehicle. The article also determines the advantages of using fleets of electric vehicles to offset the problems of the “duck curve” that are caused by the higher utilization of wind and solar energy sources. The effects of the substitution of internal combustion road vehicles with electric vehicles on carbon dioxide emission avoidance are also examined for several national electricity grids. It is determined that grids, which use a high fraction of coal as their primary energy source, will actually increase the carbon dioxide emissions; while grids that use a high fraction of renewables and nuclear energy will significantly decrease their carbon dioxide emissions. Globally, the carbon dioxide emissions will decrease by approximately 16% with the introduction of electric vehicles. Full article

Grid interactive solar photovoltaic (PV) and electric vehicle (EV) systems are the emerging technologies nowadays, mainly due to energy cost reduction and minimization of emission levels. Various research surveys have presented the effect of grid integration of PVs and EVs in an isolated way. However, it is worth accepting that with the continuous emergence of PVs and EVs, the power grid is experiencing the combined effect of PV–EV integration. The distribution system network of EVs impacts the power quality of the grid. In this paper, shunt active power filter is modelled using neuro-fuzzy control technique for the mitigation of harmonics using MATLAB. The improvement in the system performance is analyzed and compared with the traditional compensation techniques. Full article

In electrified vehicle applications, understanding the battery characteristics is of great importance as it is the state-of-art principal energy source. The key battery parameters can be identified by one of the robust and nondestructive characterization techniques, such as electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). However, relaxing the battery cell before performing the EIS method is crucial for the characterization results to be standardized. In this study, the three most common and commercially available lithium-ion technologies (NMC/graphite, LFP/graphite, NCA/LTO) are investigated at 15–45 °C temperature, in the range of 20–80% state of charge (SoC) and in fresh and aged state of health (SoH) conditions. The analysis shows that the duration of the relaxation time before impedance measurement has an impact on the battery’s nonlinear behavior. A rest time of 2 h can be proposed, irrespective of battery health condition, considering neutral technology-based impedance measurement. An impedance growth in ohmic and charge transfer characteristics was found, due to aging, and the effect of rest periods was also analyzed from an electrochemical standpoint. This experimental data was fitted to develop an empirical model, which can predict the nonlinear dynamics of lithium technologies with a 4–8% relative error for longer rest time. Full article

The consumer adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) has become most popular. Numerous studies are being carried out on the usage of EVs, the challenges of EVs, and their benefits. Based on these studies, factors such as battery charging time, charging infrastructure, battery cost, distance per charge, and the capital cost are considered factors in the adoption of electric vehicles and their interconnection with the grid. The large-scale development of electric vehicles has laid the path to Photovoltaic (PV) power for charging and grid support, as the PV panels can be placed at the top of the smart charging stations connected to a grid. By proper scheduling of PV and grid systems, the V2G connections can be made simple. For reliable operation of the grid, the ramifications associated with the PV interconnection must be properly addressed without any violations. To overcome the above issues, certain standards can be imposed on these systems. This paper mainly focuses on the various standards for EV, PV systems and their interconnection with grid-connected systems. Full article

Today, there are many recent developments that focus on improving the electric vehicles and their components, particularly regarding advances in batteries, energy management systems, autonomous features and charging infrastructure. This plays an important role in developing next electric vehicle generations, and encourages more efficient and sustainable eco-system. This paper not only provides insights in the latest knowledge and developments of electric vehicles (EVs), but also the new promising and novel EV technologies based on scientific facts and figures—which could be from a technological point of view feasible by 2030. In this paper, potential design and modelling tools, such as digital twin with connected Internet-of-Things (IoT), are addressed. Furthermore, the potential technological challenges and research gaps in all EV aspects from hard-core battery material sciences, power electronics and powertrain engineering up to environmental assessments and market considerations are addressed. The paper is based on the knowledge of the 140+ FTE counting multidisciplinary research centre MOBI-VUB, that has a 40-year track record in the field of electric vehicles and e-mobility. Full article

The global trend of urbanization and growing environmental awareness have risen concerns and demands to develop cities to become smarter. There is a grave need for ambitious sustainability strategies and projects, which can aid cities intelligently and comprehensively in this task. European Union (EU) launched 2014 the Horizon 2020 program (aka Horizon Europe), aiming to encourage the EU nations and their cities to take action to reach carbon neutrality through projects striving to smart city development. By promoting innovative, efficient, far-reaching, and replicable solutions, from the fields of smart energy production and consumption, traffic and mobility, digitalization and information communication technology, and citizen engagement, the objectives of the smart city strategies can be achieved. Horizon 2020 funded IRIS Smart Cities project was launched in 2017. One of the follower cities in the project has been the City of Vaasa in Finland. Vaasa’s climate objective is to reach carbon neutrality by 2030. In order to achieve this goal, the city has taken several decisive measures to enhance de-carbonization during recent years. One essential target for de-carbonization activities has been traffic and mobility. The primary purpose of the research conducted was to study the smart mobility, vehicle-to-grid (V2G), and second life battery solutions in the IRIS Smart Cities project, demonstrated first by the Lighthouse cities and then to be replicated in the City of Vaasa. The aim was to study which importance and prioritization these particular integrated solutions would receive in the City of Vaasa’s replication plan led by the City of Vaasa’s IRIS project task team of 12 experts, with the contribution of the key partners and stakeholders. Additionally, the aim was to study the potential of the integrated solutions in question to be eventually implemented in the Vaasa environment, and the benefit for the city’s ultimate strategy to reach carbon neutrality by 2030. The secondary object was to study the solutions’ compatibility with the IRIS lighthouse cities’ demonstrations and gathered joined experiences concerning the smart and sustainable mobility and vehicle-to-grid solutions, and utilization of 2nd life batteries. The results of the research indicated, that the innovative smart mobility solutions, including vehicle-to-grid and second life battery schemes, are highly relevant not only to the IRIS Lighthouse cities, but they also present good potential for the City of Vaasa in the long run, being compatible with the city’s climate and de-carbonization goals. Full article