Impact of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles on power distribution networks

Ever-increasing oil prices, carbon constraints, resource shortage and incentives are driving the development of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). PHEVs, which present environmental and energy security advantages versus conventional vehicles with combustion engine, will be vital to smart grids in the near future. As the number of them increases, PHEVs will have a huge impact on power grid. In this study, it is shown that uncoordinated charging of PHEVs´ on the grid will produce series of problems, while coordinated charging can improve the load profile. An analysis is performed for a power grid to demonstrate the impacts of coordination of charging, considering charging time, charging patterns and various levels of PHEV penetration.