Electric vehicle charging stations have a stability problem. As swarms of cars constantly plug in and yank their chargers out at random, every unpredictable connection sends a jolt through the system. Multiply that by a dozen or more fast chargers, and the result is power supply imbalances that can slow charging, stress equipment, and, in the worst cases, ripple instability out into the wider grid.
In other words, the strain EVs place on the grid is not just from the massive need for power, it’s from the chaos triggered by unpredictable and constantly fluctuating demand at charging stations. A new study points to an unexpectedly elegant fix: add a device called a distribution static compensator (D-STATCOM). These gadgets aren’t new, and they definitely aren’t cheap, but they excel at one thing EV stations desperately need—switching between power source and power sink on a millisecond-by-millisecond basis to catch wild swings in demand before they cause trouble.
To test the device’s potential, researchers constructed a computer simulation of a 180 kilowatt (kW) commercial charging station with a 15 kW base load and 15 charging guns drawing 11 kW each. They modeled a fleet of EVs arriving randomly throughout the day, in line with the real-world unpredictability of driver behavior. .IRPP_ruby , .IRPP_ruby .postImageUrl , .IRPP_ruby .centered-text-area {height: auto;position: relative;}.IRPP_ruby , .IRPP_ruby:hover , .IRPP_ruby:visited , .IRPP_ruby:active {border:0!important;}.IRPP_ruby .clearfix:after {content: "";display: table;clear: both;}.IRPP_ruby {display: block;transition: background-color 250ms;webkit-transition: background-color 250ms;width: 100%;opacity: 1;transition: opacity 250ms;webkit-transition: opacity 250ms;background-color: #eaeaea;}.IRPP_ruby:active , .IRPP_ruby:hover {opacity: 1;transition: opacity 250ms;webkit-transition: opacity 250ms;background-color: inherit;}.IRPP_ruby .postImageUrl {background-position: center;background-size: cover;float: left;margin: 0;padding: 0;width: 31.59%;position: absolute;top: 0;bottom: 0;}.IRPP_ruby .centered-text-area {float: right;width: 65.65%;padding:0;margin:0;}.IRPP_ruby .centered-text {display: table;height: 130px;left: 0;top: 0;padding:0;margin:0;padding-top: 20px;padding-bottom: 20px;}.IRPP_ruby .IRPP_ruby-content {display: table-cell;margin: 0;padding: 0 74px 0 0px;position: relative;vertical-align: middle;width: 100%;}.IRPP_ruby .ctaText {border-bottom: 0 solid #fff;color: #0099cc;font-size: 14px;font-weight: bold;letter-spacing: normal;margin: 0;padding: 0;font-family:'Arial';}.IRPP_ruby .postTitle {color: #000000;font-size: 16px;font-weight: 600;letter-spacing: normal;margin: 0;padding: 0;font-family:'Arial';}.IRPP_ruby .ctaButton {background: url(https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts-pro/assets/images/next-arrow.png)no-repeat;background-color: #afb4b6;background-position: center;display: inline-block;height: 100%;width: 54px;margin-left: 10px;position: absolute;bottom:0;right: 0;top: 0;}.IRPP_ruby:after {content: "";display: block;clear: both;}Recommended Reading:The future holds many, many more EV batteries.
And therein lies a solution to grid storage. They pitted the D-STATCOM against traditional load-balancing methods like a fixed capacitor, commonly used to stabilize power at electrical substations.
But fixed capacitors are not good at dealing with the high, fluctuating demand that characterizes EV charging stations. The D-STATCOM device does a better job of stabilizing power distribution and supply at the charging station, the researchers’ model showed, resulting in fewer power fluctuations to individual chargers.
Minimizing current and voltage imbalances will help prevent wear and tear on charging equipment and stabilize the grid, the researchers say. The charging station will operate more smoothly overall and EV drivers will get faster, more reliable charging—potentially aiding acceptance of EVs by consumers.
Even when the researchers fed in actual data on electricity demand from Colorado’s peak heating demand days in winter and peak cooling demand days in summer, the D-STATCOM’s benefits held true. Using this device to stabilize EV charging stations would mean less wasted energy, lower electricity costs for the station, and potentially easier integration of renewable sources, the researchers say.
Source: Saxena N.K. “Power quality enhancement by mitigating load imbalance from random electric vehicle fleet at electric vehicle charging stations.” Green Energy and Intelligent Transportation 2025.
Image: © Anthropocene Magazine.
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