Impact of electric vehicles on voltage profile and harmonics in a distribution network

This paper focuses on potential power quality impact of electric vehicles in terms of voltage profile and harmonic contamination in a low voltage CIGRE benchmark distribution system. Voltage drop and harmonic distortion have been amongst the main power quality concerns in view of likelihood of large-scale penetration of electric vehicles in transportation system. Simulations are carried out to quantify the power quality index at different electric vehicle penetration levels while considering three distinct charging strategies. The power quality indexes are found much beyond their allowed limits at only 45 % EV penetration.