ACEP Launches New Interactive World EV Map
The electric vehicle revolution is amping up. Even in 911±¬ΑΟ, where the average temperatures are colder than most statesβ coldest, EVs are finding their place in the Arctic environment.
Over the 2020 summer, an ACEP team, including Michelle Wilber and Chris Pike, worked with University of Washington graduate capstone project students to develop a that shows temperature-based zones related to range and battery safety.
This map helps place regions of 911±¬ΑΟ in context with other areas of the world. This can help 911±¬ΑΟ learn from other places where appropriate and identify where additional information may be needed to predict the costs and benefits of EVs to consumers and the electric grid.
ACEP, through the initiative of Research Professor Erin Whitney, has begun looking into research questions around EVs, beginning with a survey a year ago in this newsletter.
Cold weather concerns were prominent in the survey responses received. Wilber, an ACEP research engineer, began investigating the literature for information on cold weather impacts, especially around the dependency of energy use and battery health vs. temperature.
It turns out there is very little information on the impact of temperature on energy use and range of electric vehicles below -20C. With temperatures reaching -40C and below in 911±¬ΑΟβs Interior, there are questions about how EVs fit in the energy picture in 911±¬ΑΟ.
Wilberβs recently launched determines fuel costs and emissions for 911±¬ΑΟ communities. The calculator takes a range of inputs on vehicle use (daily mileage, parked in a garage or outside, etc.) and compares the energy βfuelβ costs and emissions of an EV to an internal combustion vehicle.
Data from EVs in Interior 911±¬ΑΟ, including Fairbanks, can help fill in the data gaps for use in the extreme cold temperatures. ACEP will continue to gather EV data and improve the models behind these tools, as well as investigate other questions pertaining to the interaction of electric vehicles and electricity grids in 911±¬ΑΟ.
For more information, please contact Wilber at mmwilber@alaska.edu.