Thesis Defence Alexander Wallberg: From Parking to Power: Integrating an Energy Management System in a Multifunctional Building to Enable E-mobility
- Date: 1 November 2024, 09:15
- Location: 101121, Sonja Lyttkens, Ångströmslaboratoriet, Lägerhyddsvägen 1, Uppsala
- Type: Thesis defence
- Thesis author: Alexander Wallberg
- External reviewer: Giambattista Gruosso
- Supervisors: Rafael Waters, Valeria Castellucci
- Research subject: Engineering Science with Specialisation in Science of Electricity
Abstract
E-mobility is pivotal in enabling sustainable and technologically advanced urban environments. In line with this, Sweden's electric vehicle fleet is rapidly expanding, thereby increasing the power necessary for charging electric vehicles. If not properly managed and controlled, this increase in power can potentially threaten grid stability and exacerbate grid congestion.
The primary aim of this thesis was to assess and investigate the potential of a next-generation parking facility at a multifunctional building to be an active part of the city’s distribution grid. The research was guided by the question of to what capacity smart control of a parking facility with a technical system could assist and alter the load demand to generate benefits for both the building and the city’s distribution grid.
This was investigated at Dansmästaren, the first multifunctional building in Uppsala, Sweden. An experimental setup with an electric vehicle charging station and an energy management system was developed at the Ångström laboratory to test and verify control strategies before their implementation at the multifunctional building's parking facility. Thereafter, a second energy management system was developed and implemented at Dansmästaren with the purpose of monitoring and controlling the electric vehicle charging at the parking facility.
The findings of the included papers were divided into two categories. The charging of the electric vehicles can either be assisted by the parking facility's technical system or altered by including the electric vehicle charging in the control for the technical system. Both categories show that a parking facility with a technical system in a multifunctional building can help reduce local grid demand while also providing local benefits for the building.
While the contribution of a single multifunctional building may appear negligible from a grid perspective, the cumulative effect becomes substantial when applied across multiple buildings. Thus, the parking facility at Dansmästaren has the potential to play an active role in the city’s distribution grid through smart charging and the utilization of an energy management system.