Work

Multi-session smart night charging of EVs for accelerated decarbonization of electric mobility

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: The majority of electric vehicles (EVs) are charged domestically overnight, when the precise timing of power allocation is not important to the user, thus providing a source of flexibility that can be leveraged by charging control algorithms. In this paper, we show that by keeping the EV connected to a standard domestic smart plug every night, it is possible to achieve an approximate 37% annual reduction in carbon intensity compared to uncontrolled charging (based on 2022 UK National Grid data) without compromising the EV owners' charging demand. For this purpose, we use Model Predictive Control techniques to schedule power delivery with the objective of minimizing grid-average CO2 emissions over forecast windows of multiple sessions (up to seven days ahead). We find that flexibility on the part of EV owners-both their willingness to keep the EV connected at night, and to indicate a precautionary (i.e., upper bound) estimate of their required state-of-charge in the morning-allows for significant emissions reduction and accelerated decarbonization of the mobility sector.

Source: PLoS ONE

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0345748

Authors: Felix Wieberneit, Emanuele Crisostomi, Anthony Quinn, Homayoun Hamedmoghadam, Robert Shorten

Institutions: Imperial College London, University of Pisa, Trinity College Dublin

Language: English

Topic: Electric Vehicles and Infrastructure

Subfield: Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Climate action, Affordable and clean energy, Industry, innovation and infrastructure, Sustainable cities and communities

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,382