VehicleToGrid
Latest
Nissan's xStorage is its take on Tesla's Powerwall battery
Nissan's grand designs for zero-emission cities of the future may be some way off, but you gotta start somewhere. And that somewhere starts with "xStorage," the automaker's home energy hoarding system announced today. Like Tesla's Powerwall and Mercedes' residential battery, the idea is to save you money in the long run by charging the thing up when off-peak electricity rates are in effect. You can then use the cache to power your home when energy is more expensive -- switching between sources by way of smartphone app -- or sell it back to the grid during these times of higher demand. And if you can juice the xStorage unit up using a renewable source like solar, then all the greener.
City of Newark, Delaware implements Vehicle-to-Grid trials
Newark, Delaware has become the first city in the US to test drive vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology. Led by professor Willett Kempton, researchers at the University of Delaware are conducting experiments at two different outlets, using electric cars as energy storage to assuage local power fluctuations. When parked at home, Kempton says his ride's got enough juice to power 7 or 8 nearby homes for 30 minutes, should the need arise. Meanwhile, the city is doing its own assessments to make sure the cars don't energize downed lines. What we're really interested in is the potential for discounts from the electric company. Plugging in our clunker for a few dollars off monthly utilities? Yes, please.[Via PhysOrg]
Vehicle-to-grid will turn suburbs into power plants, won't help undertones of repression
We've been hearing about vehicle-to-grid (V2G) for quite a while, and now a team at the University of Michigan is conducting an extensive study on the technology as part of a national sustainable energy solution. While current electric plants are good at generating power, they often fall short when it comes to storage -- which can be a problem when there's a power surge or when demand increases. V2G will let hybrid-electric owners sell the power their car generates to the electrical power grid whenever the car is not in use. The research team envisions a time when millions of hybrid vehicle owners will come together to create one large battery, allowing us all to play a small part in building our nation's energy independence. And sure, this all sounds good in theory. But wouldn't that mean relying on the neighbors to provide a key piece of the nation's infrastructure? Have you met the neighbors? Doesn't that seem a little... iffy?
