Real-World Application of Sustainable Mobility in Urban Microgrids

The impact of microgrid applications expands with the increasing share of renewable energy resources in the energy supply and the progressing electrification of the transport sector. The additional energy demand of electric vehicles (EVs) may cause increased peak loads, leading to growing burdens on the power system. In this regard, microgrids allow to cover the energy demand of EVs utilizing local renewable energy resources and a battery storage system, thereby lowering the utilization of the power system. This article discusses a self-consumption operational strategy for a real-world microgrid at the EUREF-Campus in Berlin, Germany. A rule-based control algorithm for the sustainable energy supply of EV charging stations is implemented and validated. Measurements are recorded with high resolution over three years from 2017 to 2019. The performance of the microgrid operation is assessed with regards to three distinct key indicators: Self-consumption, autarky, and emission rate. The influence of selected operating parameters under real-world and ideal operating conditions are investigated. The results indicate that self-consumption and autarky rates are sensitive to the rated power capacity of a battery storage system rather than to its rated energy capacity. Moreover, the reduction of emissions through battery deployment for EV charging amounts up to 37 % under ideal operating conditions. This underlines the potential of the microgrid concept for the sustainable application of EVs in urban areas.