Smart Grid Library

“The world hates change, yet it is the only thing that has brought progress.”  Charles F. Kettering, American inventor of the electrical ignition system and early distributed generation devices, made this observation.  As an inventor, he had ample experience as a change agent in trying to explain new ideas and technologies to skeptical potential customers [...]

A couple of statistics recently caught my attention.  The first was that in the month of May, Americans purchased more SUVs than any other type of vehicle.  Gas guzzlers, not hybrids or gas-sipping vehicles.  This happens while we have a catastrophic oil spill fouling critical habitat for land and marine species, along with the massive [...]

The greatest environmental disaster in US history began on April 20, two days before Earth Day.  Even if a miracle occurred and the well stopped leaking now, the damage to the marine and coastal environments will need years to recover.  Who knows – any hurricane that whips up these oiled waters may deposit pollutants miles [...]

The Gulf of Mexico oil spill now polluting fragile wetlands of several states is an environmental and economic disaster.  This is the downside of an addiction to oil, and it should serve as a potent reminder of the strategic value that electric vehicles will have to eliminating significant sources of carbon emissions and that crap [...]

Electric vehicles (EVs) are important pieces in the Smart Grid puzzle.  EVs will play an increasingly important dual role in transport and energy storage.  This role change has consequences that impact consumer lifestyles, wallets, and decision-making processes.  And unfortunately, there’s little being communicated to consumers at this point in time. 
For example, I recently attended an [...]

The latest electric vehicle (EV) or plug-in hybrid EV (PHEV) announcements from Detroit deliver good and bad news.  While the Chevy Volt may not actually give the average driver 230 miles per gallon, it is certainly much better than the current fleet.  I’m pleased with that news.  However, recent announcements that GM and other manufacturers – [...]

Electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) were a hot topic at last week’s National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) summer session. There were many interesting discussions, and it’s important to be aware of them as regulatory commissions will influence decisions about the Smart Grid infrastructure that must be built to support the [...]

Easy energy storage should be integrated into Home Energy Management Systems (HEMS) to encourage the fastest adoption rate by consumers.