Researchers are developing solutions for electric vehicles in areas without power or access to charging, including during outages—an innovation that could be crucial for EVs operating in remote locations.
Strengthening EV Charging Resilience for Remote and Outage-Prone Areas
A major federal initiative is enlisting electrical and computer engineering experts, including researcher Zhaoyu Wang and his team, to tackle a critical challenge: ensuring electric vehicles (EVs) have access to power, even in the face of outages or operation in remote locations. This effort is driven by the need to enhance charging infrastructure for commercial EVs while also shaping future solutions for vehicles in off-grid areas. The project is backed by a two-year, $1.2 million grant, with research partners contributing an additional $300,000 in cost-share funding.
Key Project Goals:
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Developing resilience strategies for EV charging stations in Ames, IA; Dayton, OH; and Indianapolis, IN.
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Exploring three innovative technologies to maintain charger functionality during power outages.
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Creating rapid power restoration plans for EV charging stations.
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Integrating charging station data into the Geospatial Energy Mapper, a federal online tool for clean energy planning.
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Reducing charger outage rates by 75% and cutting power restoration times by 50%.
The RECHARGE Project
This initiative, named RECHARGE (Resilience Evaluation and Enhancement of Charging Stations with Hierarchical Adaptive Restoration of Grids and Distributed Energy Resources), brings together researchers and industry leaders. Key collaborators include Ian Dobson, an engineering professor, and Anne Kimber, a director at an electric power research center. Additional partners include the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory, the AES Corporation, and municipal utility providers.
According to Wang, the research will unfold in two major phases:
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Assessing EV Charging Resilience – By analyzing years of real-world outage data from the three selected cities, researchers will determine how often disruptions occur and how long they take to resolve. This information will be used to create resilience scores for each charging station, helping to identify which locations require reinforcement.
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Developing Solutions for Greater Reliability – The team is exploring three possible approaches:
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Deploying mobile battery units to charging stations after outages.
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Equipping stations with on-site solar panels and battery storage.
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Establishing redundant power feeds from multiple substations to ensure backup power.
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Although the study won’t include direct pilot testing of these technologies, it will provide valuable insights for utilities planning to expand EV infrastructure.
“This research will give us a clearer picture of how resilient EV charging stations truly are,” Wang explained. “As we build more, resilience scores can guide placement decisions, making this a vital tool for the future of transportation.”
Since charging stations are an essential component of daily mobility, this project plays a crucial role in ensuring EV infrastructure remains dependable—even in the toughest conditions.
