MIT Says EVs Might Overburden the Electrical Grid Without These Changes

There are many who consider EVs to be the inevitable upgrade that cars have required for quite a long time. A proliferation of electrical vehicles can certainly be useful because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up reducing reliance on harmful fossil fuels. However, they come with their own set of problems, all of which would need to be managed before they can become commonplace.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that EVs might put too much of a strain on the electrical grid. If everyone is using an EV, it stands to reason that more electricity will be required than might have been the case otherwise. Not only would this lead to grid meltdowns and blackouts, it could also drive up electricity costs which would place further strain on the economy.

In spite of the fact that this is the case, researchers at MIT pointed out that there are some things that can be done to make this less of a problem in the long run. The main change that needs to be made is that demand needs to be spread out. If everyone is working a nine to five job, this would mean that the burden on the grid during the commuting hours would be far too great to sustain.

If everyone were to charge their cars up at the same time, this might create a peak of electricity usage that would deplete resources. Most users would put their cars on charge after work, but they won’t need to use them before the morning. Hence, charging times can be staggered through the use of an app. Users can plug their cars in to charge, but they would only actually be charging in the allotted timeframe.

Also, users should be encouraged to charge more during the day when electricity demand is usually at its lowest. This will spread the burden out considerably and help to keep the grid up and running without causing any type of damage.


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