GM and ABB Demonstrate Chevrolet Volt
Battery Reuse—World’s First Use of Electric Vehicle Batteries for
Homes
SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/
-
- Partnership with ABB
results in prototype back-up power storage unit
—Energy storage project readies for testing on the power grid
General Motors and ABB today showed the next
stage in battery reuse, the repackaging of five used Chevrolet Volt
batteries into a modular unit capable of providing two hours of
electricity needed by three to five average American homes.
The uninterruptable power supply and grid power balancing system
was demonstrated during GM’s Electrification Experience. The
prototype unit provided 25 kW of power and 50 kWh of energy to
power all the support lighting and audiovisual equipment in an
“off-grid” structure used for the event.
“GM’s battery development extends throughout the entire life of
the battery, including secondary use,” said Pablo Valencia, GM
senior manager of battery lifecycle management. “In many cases,
when an EV battery has reached the end of its life in an automotive
application, only 30 percent or less of its life has been used.
This leaves a tremendous amount of life that can be applied to
other applications like powering a structure before the battery is
recycled.”
GM and ABB (http://media.gm.com/content/media/us/en/news/ne…
) last year demonstrated how a Chevrolet Volt battery pack could be
used to collect energy and feed it back to the grid and deliver
supplemental power to homes or businesses.
During today’s demonstration, the energy storage system was run
in a “remote power back-up” mode where 100 percent of the power for
the facility came from Volt batteries through ABB’s Energy Storage Inverter system. A similar
application could one day be used to power a group of homes or
small commercial buildings during a power outage, allow for storage
of power during inexpensive periods for use during expensive peak
demand, or help make up for gaps in solar, wind or other renewable
power generation.
These functions, along with frequency regulation on electric
distribution systems, could someday be used by utilities to reduce
cost to customers and improve the quality of power delivery. These
applications are referred to as community energy storage to
distinguish them from substation-size energy storage projects.
“We showed today how fast this research concept is turning into
reality,” said Allen Burchett, ABB’s senior
vice president for Business Development in North America. “The
ABB-GM Volt battery system is the world’s
first use of car batteries as possible back-up power for homes and
other commercial uses. We will be installing it on the grid soon to
complete the technical evaluation, and this will tell us all what
smart grid applications are possible, like back-up power, reducing
energy cost, strengthening utilities’ distribution systems and
storing surplus renewable energy.”
ABB’s research center in Raleigh, N.C.,
conducted the research and development, and ABB’s Medium Voltage business unit in Lake Mary, Fla., is
managing the proof-of-concept testing, market research and product
development. As the world’s largest EV fast-charging company and
leader in smart grid and energy storage, ABB
works with other auto companies, battery manufacturers and
utilities to help make electric power and industrial operations
more productive and efficient.
GM is focused on assuring battery systems used in future
Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac vehicles
provide environmental and societal benefits beyond their use in the
vehicle. Long before a battery is recycled, secondary use provides
the opportunity to fully utilize the battery resource.
GM is dedicated to waste reduction throughout its operations,
and its worldwide manufacturing facilities combined recycle 90
percent of the waste they generate. Ensuring that batteries are
part of reducing the environmental impact of its vehicles and
operations is part of the company’s roadmap to sustainability.
General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM, TSX: GMM) and
its partners produce vehicles in 30 countries, and the company has
leadership positions in the world’s largest and fastest-growing
automotive markets. GM’s brands include Chevrolet and Cadillac, as
well as Baojun, Buick, GMC, Holden, Isuzu,
Jiefang, Opel, Vauxhall and Wuling. More information on the company
and its subsidiaries, including OnStar, a global leader in vehicle
safety, security and information services, can be found at http://www.gm.com.
CONTACT:
Kevin M. Kelly
GM Battery and Hybrid Technology Communications
[email protected]
+31-3316-9742
For more information on ABB’s ideas for
electrical vehicle infrastructure, multimedia material or to speak
to ABB experts please click here( http://www.abb.com/hvdcgrid
).
ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and
automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers
to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact.
The ABB Group of companies operates in around
100 countries and employs about 145,000 people.
ABB Group Media Relations:
Thomas Schmidt; Antonio Ligi
(Zurich, Schweiz)
+41-43-317-6568
[email protected]
http://twitter.com/ABBcomms
SOURCE ABB