As utilities are gearing up to deploy the smart grid and expand it over time with the installation of thousands and sometimes millions of smart meters, they are not only faced with the formidable task of managing the huge volume of data generated by these meters and other intelligent devices on the smart grid, but they must also determine how to take advantage of all this data. They must be able to transform the raw data into useful information that can guide their business decisions and actions, especially with regard to grid operation and customer relationship and management. Therefore, the ability to perform data analytics becomes a critical undertaking. Otherwise, a utility organization can become very data rich, yet very information poor.

Through smart grid data analytics, utilities can turn the masses of data into business value in various ways. First, data analytics will improve their ability to run a more efficient and effective grid operation than ever before – especially with respect to revenue loss management, load management, outage management, asset management, and energy management. Second, analysis of data can provide enormous benefits from a customer management perspective because customer data is one of the most important assets a utility possesses. Thanks to data analytics, utilities can identify and correct customer issues. In addition, it allows them to understand customer behavior and preferences better. Smart metering with increased data availability, for example, at 15 minute intervals, makes it possible for utilities to respond to any customer changes quickly and appropriately. As a result, they are able to serve their customers more effectively with new products and services – providing the opportunity for a utility to generate new revenue streams.

The ability to monetize the explosion of AMI data can be expected to become a major economic driver for further investments among utilities in smart meters and the smart grid in the coming years. Vendors that have developed expertise in this area will most likely enjoy robust demand for their software and services in the future. One such software vendor is GridGlo, a smart data mining, aggregation and fusion provider, based in Delray Beach, Florida, which has been working with several major utilities to obtain intelligent and actionable consumer information by integrating consumer behavioral data with energy consumption data. GridGlo’s proprietary software platform enables a utility client to create a consumer energy profile that shows when, where, and how much energy is consumed. By aggregating this data from a group of consumers (to avoid any privacy concerns by looking at individual consumer data) and integrating it with other data, such as demographics, weather, zip codes, and other behavioral information, GridGlo is able to monetize the data for utilities by:

• Developing personalized services or software solutions that are uniquely customized for the specific consumer segment that the utility client wants to target. Presumably, consumers would be interested in obtaining this more “individualized” service or product for a fee.
• Reducing their load reserve or inventory (e.g. from 8% to 10%) thanks to more accurate and reliable forecasting and modeling tools some utilities in certain regional markets are able to generate and sell more energy to their consumers.
• Decreasing the probability of energy theft and abandonment (i.e. lack of payment of energy bills) through better understanding and forecasting of certain consumer segments can help utilities save a great deal of money over time.

By finding ways to monetize AMI data, GridGlo is not only helping utilities gain business value from their smart meters but also enabling them to move beyond risk mitigation and focus on growth and innovation. With adoption of smart grid technology, utilities are evolving from solely being distributors of energy to also becoming information brokers and analysts.

I have been making the argument recently that fuel cells and batteries are complementary vehicle technologies with fuel cells applicable to larger vehicle platforms with longer duty cycles than pure battery EVs are. However, today’s blog post looks at another more literal way for fuel cells and BEVs to complement each other: using fuel cells as range extenders for BEVs.

It is important to note that all FCVs are in fact hybrid electric vehicles and already feature a fuel cell-battery drivetrain (a few are using ultracapacitors). The battery can take some of the peak power needs, thereby reducing the size of the fuel cell, and allow regenerative braking. In this configuration, the fuel cell provides primary propulsion and is typically sized from 80 to 100 kW.

Some companies are switching this configuration and placing very small fuel cells into battery EVs as an onboard charger. At last month’s Electric Drive Transportation Association conference in Washington D.C., U.S. company Nuvera and U.K. company Intelligent Energy each discussed their work on this concept. According to Nuvera, their lab simulator of a 20-kW PEM fuel cell coupled with a battery increased BEV range from 59 to 162 miles. Obviously, it remains to be seen how this will translate into a real vehicle platform, but that is an impressive improvement. Intelligent Energy has paired its PEM fuel cells with batteries in several vehicle platforms, including a scooter, small delivery van, and a London black cab.

A key question for this concept will be how to distribute the hydrogen? EnerFuel, a subsidiary of battery manufacturer Ener1 Inc., is hoping to address this question by integrating a high temperature PEM fuel cell which can run off of conventional fuels.

The company’s strategy is to combine a 1-20 kW high-temperature PEM with an onboard reformer that can reform any commercial fuel, including gasoline, to hydrogen. It is not a new concept to use a reformer with a fuel cell car. Several auto OEMs tried this approach in the early days of FCV development, as a way to avoid the problem of hydrogen infrastructure, only to abandon it as an overly complicated, and expensive, engineering challenge. Enerfuel says that high temperature PEM (HT-PEM) fuel cells make this concept viable. Since HT-PEMs are more tolerant of carbon monoxide (CO), EnerFuel’s system does not have onboard CO removal, one of the major engineering challenges.

Rather remarkably, EnerFuel also projects that this fuel cell-battery hybrid BEV can be less expensive than a full battery EV because a smaller battery can be used and the fuel cell balance of plant is also reduced.

The fuel cell range extender is still a work in progress, mainly in the lab testing and demonstration vehicle phase, but it will interesting to see if this concept works to help make pure BEVs more than a commuter car.

For each hopeful soul lining up to see Revenge of the Electric Car, there is a non-believer who says that today’s EVs are no better than those that came before, and that EVs are a passing fad. While the vehicle technology may not appear to have progressed significantly, the environmental conditions for success (such as infrastructure) clearly have.

The EV critics point to (with some legitimacy) the similarities in the specifications between GM’s EV1 and the Nissan Leaf, the most visible and comparable EV being offered today. The EV1 was rated as 78 miles of driving range, which is not much different than the 80-100 miles that the Leaf will deliver. The Leaf actually weighs more (3,368 compared to 2,922 pounds), and takes longer to recharge through the base charging unit (Nissan is likely to correct this before long) than did the EV1.
However, the Leaf’s lithium-ion battery pack is likely to last much longer (seven to ten years), and the car is priced at under $33,000, or well less than half of the $80,000 to $100,000 that it reportedly cost GM to manufacture the EV1. Even if you concede that the core technology may not have changed that much, the vast majority of folks who drove an EV1 or today’s EV options are delighted with the acceleration and overall performance.

For the doubters, it’s like dismissing the TV show Mad Men without ever having watched it. Also, those same EV critics don’t complain that internal combustion engine vehicles haven’t changed all that much either, with many sedans offering similar fuel economy and performance, while the price of the vehicles and the operating (fuel) cost continue to rise.

Today’s all electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles (PEVs) also offer many amenities not present 10-15 years ago, such as remote controlling of charging and monitoring of the battery state, and a fully loaded navigation and information system. The plug-in vehicles also offer a total driving range equivalent to a gas engine, which will satisfy an entirely new audience of drivers.

One significant determinant of success that has clearly advanced is the vehicle charging infrastructure. In the late ’90s and early 2000s, there was a multitude of incompatible charging systems and very little public charging infrastructure. Now in the United States we have a standard plug for charging (a.k.a. J1772), and thousands of charge spots being installed. While many of the early EV enthusiasts tolerated carrying a trunk full of charging adapters, whether you buy a Leaf, Volt, i-MiEV, Prius Plug-In, or Focus EV, you’ll be able to access charging equipment at home or on the road without worrying about the type of equipment provided. This standardization will drive the cost of the charging equipment down while reducing the overstated “range anxiety” of not knowing where your next charge will be. Plugging in will be conveniently available at many office buildings, parking lots, and retail locations. Unfortunately there is a split on fast DC charging standardization that could be a temporary setback for the EV industry, as I noted before.

Also increasing the likelihood of success is the expansion of the political motivations for supporting PEVs. These now include energy security, jobs, balancing the trade deficit, as well as reducing emissions. While there will be bumps along the way, PEVs aren’t going away.

I get the sense that some folks think fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) and plug-in vehicles are in a steel cage deathmatch, and only one will come out alive. My last blog post made the argument that FCVs and plug-in vehicles are not competing technologies but are complementary ones. I want to expand on that a bit here and note how the characteristics of each technology drive the vehicle segments in which Pike forecasts FCVs to be introduced.

So, my point last week was that hydrogen’s energy storage capacity by weight and volume makes FCVs the best zero emission option for larger vehicles and for long distance driving. This concept of a portfolio of clean vehicles technologies needed to meet the range of consumer demands is expressed well in the General Motors graphic below. There are multiple variants on this touted by a number of automakers, including Daimler and Toyota.

Pike Research’s analysis of the plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and pure battery (BEV) markets suggests that planned vehicle introductions are clustered in the small and mid-size car categories, with small cars dominating. There are only a handful of planned plug-in SUVs.

Contrast this with the current generation of FCVs, which is dominated by the SUV and crossover platforms, with a smaller number of mid-size sedans. In the mid- to full-size segments we see the Honda Clarity and Mercedes Benz B Class, while the small to mid-size SUV/crossover segments feature the GM Equinox, Toyota Highlander, Hyundai Tucson, and Kia’s Borrego and Sportage. There is little incentive for the major OEMs to develop fuel cells for the sub-compact or compact segments, as this is primarily where commercial BEVs and PHEVs are being introduced already. OEMs are not looking for another zero emissions competitor in these smaller segments.

It should be noted that this trend is not absolute throughout the fuel cell industry. Several small startup companies are exploring fuel cells for microcars. U.K. startup Riversimple is using Horizon’s 6 kW PEM fuel cells in its ground-up microcar, and fellow U.K. company Microcab is incorporating Serenergy’s 3.5 kW fuel cells into a commuter car chassis. For these cars, fuel cells can still provide the main propulsion, but can be sized at under 10 kW, rather than the 80-100 kW units being used in full-size cars. This significantly reduces the cost of the fuel cells and requires much smaller amounts of hydrogen fuel. Microcab is producing a fleet of eight microcars for a U.K. demonstration program – quite a small number but it will be interesting to see if this concept takes hold. Micro fuel cell cars could have appeal in countries like the United Kingdom where very large passenger cars are not the norm, creating a different pathway for fuel cells than what we see in the big OEMs’ application map.