Cold weather proves challenging for EVs, but they could be used as delivery vehicles, taxis, UAF researchers say
A University of Alaska Fairbanks researcher says her research team’s recent study shows electric vehicles could benefit rural communities around the state that are off the road system.
Michelle Wilber is the lead author of the study. She’s a research engineer for UAF’s Alaska Center for Energy and Power. And she concedes that the study’s premise contradicts a commonly held notion that electric vehicles, or EVs, don’t do well during winter in Alaska.
'Is this a good idea?'
“We all know that electric vehicles have lower range and use more energy in the winter,” she said. “So we started out with the question: ‘Is this a good idea?’ ”
EVs use a lot of the energy stored in their battery to keep it and the passenger compartment warm during cold winter days. That limits the distance an EV can travel under those conditions, much more than a gasoline- or diesel-powered vehicle.
That’s probably why the researchers got some skeptical feedback about the study, including some from residents of the three communities where it was conducted: Bethel, Kotzebue and Galena.
“We got some fun Facebook posts about people who are very much worried that it's not a good idea,” she said in an interview Monday. Others said they thought it's "an intriguing idea."
But Wilber says the data they collected led researchers to conclude that EVs are actually better-suited than gasoline- or diesel-powered vehicles for certain uses in those communities.
“So, we have held a number of community meetings, collected a bunch of data, done a bunch of analysis, and we found out that … in most cases that we modeled, it looks like it often is a good idea.”
The research showed that’s largely because operating gasoline- or diesel-powered vehicles in cold weather can be costly, especially for those who leave the engine running for a while in the morning to warm it up or at other times of day when running errands. And fuel is expensive in rural communities -- diesel costs about 8 dollars a gallon in Kotzebue, about 9 dollars in Galena.
Conventional-vehicle energy use analyzed
“Non-electric cars are using a lot more energy than we thought, it seems, in daily operation,” she said. “Idling to keep them warm, you know, keep your car running at the grocery store while you run in and back out, because you don't want it to cool down.”
The researchers also factored-in the cost of plugging-in vehicles so their block heater will keep the engine warm enough to start more easily. The communities all have their own power plants, and the diesel that fuels those generators also is expensive -- and so is the cost of power.
“Plugging the car in overnight into a block heater, especially if you don't have any timer or you're not watching how long it's plugged in for, those are using a lot of energy, too.”
Wilber says their analysis accounted for other factors, like the ways people use their vehicles. They found that EVs are less-expensive to operate than gasoline- or diesel-powered vehicles for longer-duration uses like for taxis or deliveries, because the vehicle is on and its battery stays warm.
EVs suited for longer drives
“There are a number of factors that we found can make that switch to electric even more clearly beneficial. One is longer driving times. Because there is energy used to keep the battery of an EV warm, even when it's not being driven.”
Similarly, the researchers found that EVs work well for people who commute long distances. But that’s not common in rural communities, so Wilber says the study affirms that not every rural resident would benefit by having an EV. That may be why there are only a few in those communities they studied. But she says the paper shows that some potentially would benefit.
“In most cases that we modeled, based on actual uses of vehicles given to us in interviews and meetings with community members and using our best data on electric vehicle energy use in the cold, it looks like it often is a good idea. It often does save people money.”
Wilber says Use of EVs also reduce greenhouse gas emissions — even if the electricity they use to charge the vehicle is generated by fossil fuels like diesel or coal. They're even more eco-effective is some or all of the power they use to recharge is generated by renewable sources like wind and solar.
The National Science Foundation-funded study compiled by Wilber and her team was published last month in the World Electric Vehicle Journal. In Delta Junction, I’m Tim Ellis.
Editor's note: Wilber and her research team are asking electric-vehicle owners in Fairbanks and elsewhere around the state to share their experience with their EV. She can be contacted by email at mmwilber@alaska.edu
