Abstract
A PHEV demonstration project gave 80 consumers within the Northern California counties of Sacramento, Yolo and San Joaquin the opportunity to drive a PHEV-conversion for at least one month each in lieu of one of their existing vehicles. Households decided for themselves when, where, and how much to charge the PHEV, if at all. Out of the 80 households, 25 were characterized as plausible future PHEV owners who also commuted to a workplace. Each of the PHEV-conversions was equipped with loggers which recorded all travel and charging data. To estimate the potential implications of added workplace charging infrastructure across a group of commuting households, each household’s vehicle usage is simulated with six hypothetical PHEVs, the design characteristics of which are outlined in Table 2 of this paper. Combining each household’s usage data with the hypothetical designs allows their PHEV-conversion experience to be generalized beyond the specific PHEV-conversion to plausible future PHEV designs. Since most households did not have access to charging infrastructure at work, charging events are simulated for each household every time they arrive at their workplace. Comparison between the recorded behavior and the simulated workplace charging case allows for an exploration of the potential impacts of workplace charging on the individual and fleet utility factor, workplace charging infrastructure requirements, and grid load. Workplace charging increases the total fleet average utility factor, however, the benefit varies considerably by household and vehicle charge depleting range. Based on simulation results, up to 75% of commuters would be able to use 1.44 kW charging without experiencing a decrease in electric miles driven, and workplace charging creates a new peak vehicle charging load on the grid in the morning, in the range of 0.8 to 1.4 kW per PHEV.
Highlights
Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs) are dual fuel vehicles which allow consumers the option to use grid electricity and/or gasoline for travel
PHEVs can operate in a high fuel economy Charge Depleting (CD) mode, or an all-electric mode
When the traction battery depletes beyond a pre-determined state, PHEVs, irrespective of the drivetrain design, enter into a Charge Sustaining (CS) mode in which the vehicle operates like a conventional Hybridelectric Vehicle (HEV), using gasoline as the primary energy source with electricity, which is generated on-board the vehicle through regenerative braking or an ICE tied generator, used to increase fuel economy
Summary
Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs) are dual fuel vehicles which allow consumers the option to use grid electricity and/or gasoline for travel. Transportation analysts have relied on single day travel diary data and assumptions about charging behavior to simulate the utility factor and grid impacts of PHEVs [2]. While these analyses capture some plausible PHEV usage behaviors they do not capture the variation in behaviors which can be expected in a vehicle owning population over extended periods and cannot reflect patterns or routines in household PHEV usage[4]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
