A bright idea: Hybrid cars could be energy-storage units

by Tracy Davis | The Ann Arbor News Monday November 24, 2008, 1:14 PM

Scientists at the University of Michigan are rethinking the role of electric cars in the future.

What if, instead of sucking up resources, those cars could serve as storage for alternative energy, and put that energy onto the grid when it's most needed?

U-M researchers, aided by a $2 million National Science Foundation grant, will explore the concept of using plug-in electric hybrid vehicles essentially as energy reserves, which could provide extra power during times of peak demand.

The "vehicle-to-grid integration" idea is one that could help stabilize the grid, and reduce the need to build more power plants. It's being closely watched in the energy field, especially among advocates of alternative energy as part of a larger effort to improve the sustainability and resilience of transportation and electric power infrastructures.

The basic idea is to use the batteries in plug-in electric hybrid vehicles as extra storage space for grid energy, such as energy from renewable resources like sun and wind. In addition to helping to flatten demand peaks by acting as suppliers, the cars would help redefine the American fleet as one of the biggest sources of energy consumption in the country.

If the cars become popular as gas prices rise, millions on the road could provide unprecedented storage space.

The four-year project has several components, including design, impacts analysis, computer modeling and grid modeling.

Of course, there are plenty of questions to explore. What might be the impact on vehicle battery life, if any? And if someone plugs their car in, shouldn't they assume it's charging, not being drained?

Project director Jeff Stein, a professor of mechanical engineering, acknowledges there are many questions to answer: "We are more looking to the future as to what is possible, rather than claiming we have something ready to go today.

"There are a lot of issues here to think about, but there is a lot of potential to explore," he added. "And we have a lot of need for new kinds of solutions."

"The crux is going to be smart metering, so you can keep track of what's going each direction, but there are pretty major technological hurdles to overcome," said Andrew Brix of the Ann Arbor Energy Office.

And that's why the study is important, to investigate those issues, scientists say.

"Only by applying thoughtful, well-developed science will the nation be able to make the right decisions to effectively address our energy challenges," said Gary Was, director of the Michigan Memorial Phoenix Energy Institute which develops, coordinates and promotes multidisciplinary energy research and education at U-M.

The team includes Hosam Fathy, Zoran Filipi and Huei Peng in the U-M Department of Mechanical Engineering; Duncan Callaway and Greg Keoleian in the School of Natural Resources and Environment; John Sullivan in the Transportation Research Institute; Jing Sun in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and Carl Simon, in the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy; as well as Mariesa Crow from the Missouri University of Science and Technology.

Source: http://www.mlive.com/annarbornews/features/index.ssf/2008/11/a_bright_idea_hybrid_cars_coul.html