Energy Efficiency Technology from Pacific Northwest Nat’l Lab

PNNL has really been on our radar lately. We recently did a podcast interview with Graham Parker, Manager of the High Performance Windows Volume Purchase Program at PNNL, and now we’d like to share another one of their energy-saving technologies – the Grid Friendly Charger Controller.

One of the challenges to the widespread adoption of electric vehicles is the ability for the nation’s electric grid to handle a nation of car-charging Americans. PNNL’s technology helps solve this problem. As their website states:

Wireless technology embedded in the Grid Friendly Charger Controller will communicate with the utility’s smart meter to receive a rate schedule or electric pricing updates in real-time. The Grid Friendly Charger Controller will then determine an optimal charging strategy that reduces the electricity cost to the customer.

The Grid Friendly Charger Controller has another feature, also developed at PNNL, that protects the electrical grid during high grid stress conditions and assist in integrating large amounts of intermittent renewable energy resources, such as wind and solar technologies into the grid. Grid Friendly technology recognizes when the grid is under stress and briefly reduces the charging current to the battery. This sensitivity to grid stress may be critical in preventing power outages.

You can find out more about the product at their website, and review other available technologies as well.

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