SMART

Second-life Battery in Mobile EV Charging Application for Rural Transportation (SMART)

A project funded by the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Vehicle Technologies Office.

Mobile charging stations (MCSs) play a critical role in removing charging deserts and alleviating range anxiety, as they can be transported to desired locations for electric vehicle (EV) charging with fewer concerns about power infrastructure and locational constraints. While some communities will potentially need many MCSs to eliminate charging deserts, the high investment cost due to large and new battery energy storage systems (BESS) and low utilization rate are obstacles to adoption at a large scale. The requirement of large and new BESS in MCSs also strains the U.S. battery supply chain.

This project aims to address the urgent need to develop affordable MCSs that can be deployed on a large scale by utilizing second-life batteries (SLB) retired from EVs.

The project objectives are:

1. Design, develop, demonstrate, and validate three types of cost-effective MCSs that utilize SLB to reduce the upfront investment cost by 35-50%.
2. Create and demonstrate first-of-the-kind affordable, resilient, and sustainable EV infrastructure in a multi-state region (TN, OH, VA, KY, WV, KS, and TX) by seamlessly integrating the affordable MCSs into the existing charging network that is dominated by stationary charging stations, to support electrification in all communities.
3. Collect and analyze the first-hand data of SLB-powered MCSs to assess the potential market and benefits.
4. Create outreach, training, and education opportunities to help a broad range of EV stakeholders make informed decisions in adopting SLB-powered MCSs and develop economically viable MCS products.