Economic Benefit and Peak Demand Reduction of Photovoltaic and Second-Life Battery Storage on Fast Charging System

In direct current fast charging stations (DCFC), solar photovoltaic (PV) and battery storage systems are proposed to reduce the cost of electricity and grid demand. This work evaluates the economic feasibility and grid peak demand reduction of PV and Second-life Batteries (SLBs) by system optimation on the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) and grid demand in DCFCs in Michigan. Two cities were analyzed to evaluate the impact of PV and Battery size: 1) Reed City and 2) Manistique. The scenarios are set in 2030, when the market share of electric vehicles in Michigan is expected to reach 25%. The results show that PV installation reduces LCOE but has no significant contribution to reducing the power consumption from the grid. However, it contributes only a small portion of cost reduction compared with battery storage. In the current optimal model, increasing the PV size could further reduce the LCOE but will require more area for installation, which restrains the economic benefit from the PV. Although the LCOE and grid demand are more sensitive to the battery capacity, the PV installation is economically suitable in DCFC for selected locations.