For an environmentally sustainable future, electric vehicle (EV) adoption rates have been growing exponentially around the world. There is a pressing need for constructing smart charging infrastructures that can successfully integrate the large influx of connected and autonomous EVs (CAEVs) into the smart grids. To fulfill the aspiration of massive deployment of autonomous mobility on demand (AMoD) services, the proposed fast and secure framework will need to address the long charging times and long waiting times of static charging. It will also need to consider dynamic wireless charging as a viable solution for the CAEVs on the move. In this thesis, a novel three-layer charging system design of static and dynamic wireless charging that can operate with the existing wired charging infrastructure and standards for Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) is presented. This internet of things (IoT) application is accompanied by a proposed handshake protocol with light-weight request message frames. It employs vehicle to infrastructure (V2I) and vehicle to grid (V2G) communications for fulfilling charging requests of CAEVs with the shortest possible route to the destination. The charging requests of the CAEV users are fulfilled by dynamically distributing the request over the three different types of charging equipment. Further, the requests are serviced and billed privately and securely using two different proposed payment schemes with the encrypted virtual currency. The hardware independent system can detect misalignment of the CAEVs on the wireless charging pads and the speed issue errors in dynamic wireless charging systems as well as avoid free-riders. Additionally, the proposed dynamic wireless charging network (DWCN) design specification tool is analyzed. The suggestions made by the tool for building a DWCN can enable implementers to achieve the desired charging delivery performance at the lowest cost possible. Finally, the presented system is simulated, and this verified and validated simulator is revealed to make reservations and plan trips with minimum waiting times, travel costs, and battery consumption per vehicle trip. The system results proved 90.25% charge delivery efficiency. This system is then compared with alternative system designs to help showcase its ability to aid implementers and analysts in making design choices with the simulation.

This work investigated a novel vapor chamber for efficient heat spreading and heat removal. A vapor chamber acting as a heat spreader enables for more uniform temperature distribution along the surface of the device being cooled. First, a vapor chamber was studied and compared with the traditional copper heat spreader. The thickness of vapor chamber was kept 1.35 mm which was considered to be ultra-thin vapor chamber. Then, a new geometrical model having graphite foam in vapor space was proposed where the graphite foam material was incorporated in vapor space as square cubes. The effects of incorporating graphite foam in vapor space were compared to the vapor chamber without the embedded graphite foam to investigate the heat transfer performance improvements of vapor chamber by the high thermal conductivity graphite foam. Finally, the effects of various vapor chamber thicknesses were studied through numerical simulations. It was found that thinner vapor chamber (1.35 mm thickness) had better heat transfer performance than thicker vapor chamber (5 mm thickness) because of the extreme high effective thermal conductivities of ultra-thin vapor chamber. Furthermore, the effect of graphite foam on thermal performance improvement was very minor for ultra-thin vapor chamber, but significant for thick vapor chamber. The GF could help reduce the junction temperature by 15-30% in the 5-mm thick vapor chamber. Use of GF embedded vapor chamber could achieve 250-400 Watt per Centimeter square local heat removal for power electronics. The application of this is not only limited to electronic devices but actuator and avionics cooling in aircrafts, thermal management of electronics in directed energy weapon systems, battery thermal management for electric and hybrid vehicles, smart phones cooling, thus covering a wide gamut of heat flux applications.

Electric vehicles (EVs) are used instead of fossil fuel-burning vehicles to reduce greenhouse gases. The increased rate of utilizing EVs has an impact on the electric power system. This is due to the fact that EVs are loads that increase the peak demand. From these perspectives, this thesis studies the load of the electric chargers in a parking house in Uppsala and studies the effect of adding battery storage systems. The cost of used electricity is also calculated at different battery storage system (BSS) capacities, and the electricity bill is evaluated at these different conditions.  The data used in this work was collected from a parking house allocated in Uppsala city in 2021. It is equipped with 30 charging stations and 60 charging points in total. In addition, the parking house is connected to a PV system with two racks of batteries with a capacity of 137kWh. The surplus power generated by the PV system is sold to the grid. The data from the PV production and EVs demand is analyzed using MATLAB. The electricity price used in this study is from a standard contract from Vattenfall, with different prices at day and night (0.144 SEK/kWh at night and 0.48 SEK/kWh during day time). The battery is charged during the night, at a lower price, and discharges during the day. The excess power from the PV is also stored in the battery as self-consumption is more profitable than selling it to the grid.  The results show that the installed BSS units reduce the overall cost of the load as compared to those without BSS units. By studying the system under different battery capacities, the electricity bill is reduced to a certain limit. However, the increase in storage capacity beyond 137 kWh has no effect on the overall electricity cost. This maximum limit of the BSS unit's capacity would be greatly affected by the size of the installed PV system and the number of EVs to be charged. Controlling the charging and discharging periods has a significant impact on reducing the system cost.

Technology advancements enable and encourage higher system electrifications in various applications. More electrified applications need more capable and higher performing sources of energy in terms of power delivery, power regeneration, and energy capacity. For example, in electric, hybrid electric, and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle applications (EVs, HEVs, and PHEVs), the power and energy ratings of the vehicle energy storage system (ESS) have a direct impact on the vehicle performance. Many researchers investigated and studied various aspects of hybrid energy storage systems (HESS) wherein multiple ESSs are combined together to share system loads, increase ESS capabilities, and cycle life. Various configurations and their application specific topologies were also proposed by other researchers; the potential of HESS has been proven to be very promising. In this research, the goal is to present the theory of a HESS configuration that has not been discovered thus far. This HESS configuration is called a series-parallel reconfigurable HESS (SPR-HESS) since it is capable of recombining multiple storage systems into different series, parallel, or series-parallel configurations, via power electronic converters, to accommodate different operation modes and load requirements. Simulations, as well as experimental verifications, are presented in this thesis. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

The purpose of this study was to determine Chinese and U.S. consumers' attitudes and perceptions toward hybrid cars and the likelihood of purchasing one in the future.

In a smart city, it is vital to provide a clean and green environment by curbing air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) from transportation. As a recent action from many governments aiming to minimize transportation’s pollution upon the climate, new plans have been announced to ban cars with gas engines throughout the world. Therefore, it is anticipated that the presence of electric vehicles (EVs) will grow very fast globally. Consequently, the necessity to establish electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) in the smart city through public charging stations is growing incrementally year by year. However, the EV charging process via EVSE which is primarily connected to the power grid will put high pressure upon the centralized power grid, especially during peak demand periods. Increasing the power production of power grid will increase the environmental impact. Therefore, it is fundamental for the smart city to be equipped with a modern power grid to cope with the traditional power grid’s drawbacks. In this thesis, we conduct an in-depth analysis of the problem of EVs’ interaction with the modern power grid in a smart city to manage and control EV charging and discharging processes. We also present various approaches and mechanisms toward identifying and investigating these challenges and requirements to manage the power demand. We propose novel solutions, namely Decentralized-EVSE (D-EVSE), for EVs’ charging and discharging processes based on Renewable Energy Sources (RESs) and an energy storage system. We present two algorithms to manage the interaction between EVs and D-EVSE while maximizing EV drivers’ satisfaction in terms of reducing the waiting time for charging or discharging services and minimizing the stress placed on D-EVSE. We propose an optimization model based on Game Theory (GT) to manage the interaction between EVs and D-EVSE. We name this the decentralized-GT (D-GT) model. This model aims to find the optimal solution for EVs and D-EVSE based on the concept of win-win. We design a decentralized profit maximization algorithm to help D-EVSE take profit from the electricity price variation during the day when selling or buying electricity respectively to EVs or from the grid or EVs as discharging processes. We implement different scenarios to these models and show through analytical and simulation results that our proposed models help to minimize the D-EVSE stress level, increase the D-EVSE sustainability, maximize the D-EVSE profit, as well as maximize EV drivers’ satisfaction and reduce EVs’ waiting time.

<p dir="ltr"><b><i>Background</i></b><b>:</b> The increase in EV deployment is presenting numerous energy challenges to the utility distribution infrastructure. The energy demands created by EV charging sessions and the growing call to develop a network of DCFC charging facilities increases operational risk to the utilities in the ability to provide safe and reliable electricity to all customers.</p><p dir="ltr"><b><i>Purpose:</i></b> The purpose of this study is to identify the extent of impact to the utility distribution grid from an increasing EV (electric vehicle) adoption.</p><p dir="ltr"><b><i>Setting</i></b><b>: </b>In total, there were 3,020 rows of distribution circuit feeder data collected from the PG&E DIDF and National Grid NY System Reporting Tool between 2022 – 2023. Additionally, 48 documents, engineering reports, rate filings, articles, research studies, and utility whitepapers were examined.</p><p dir="ltr"><b><i>Research Design:</i></b> Impact analysis using a mixed methodology.</p><p dir="ltr"><b><i>Data Collection and Analysis:</i></b> A single research question was used to formulate an impact analysis to the utility distribution infrastructure under a mixed methodology. A quantitative analysis to determine circuit burden based on historical feeder capacity data and conduct hypothetical impact testing based on a set of ten variables. A qualitative analysis was administered to support these results and further design recommendations for the utility system under a logic model.</p><p dir="ltr"><b><i>Findings:</i></b> The PG&E and Utility National Grid EV and Circuit Impact Analysis demonstrated high susceptibility to overburden under a moderate number of level 2 EV chargers and significantly more when the loading impact was the result of DCFC facilities. The additional exploratory research yielded a consistent theme of mitigation strategies applicable to all electric utilities.</p><p><br></p><p dir="ltr"><b><i>Conclusions</i></b><i>:</i> Portions of the electric distribution infrastructure, operated by hundreds of utilities across the United States must be analyzed, upgraded, and adequately managed under systematic programs which promote facility upgrades, energy management, technology integration, such as AMI. Further, the execution of regulatory strategies for smart policy development and investment into hosting capacity tools are critical to reducing EV impact to the utility.</p><p dir="ltr"><b><i>Keywords</i></b><i>: </i>EV, electric utility, EV grid impacts, EV grid analysis, EV managed charging, EV AMI infrastructure.</p>

O interesse por veículos elétricos voltou a crescer nos últimos anos, principalmente, devido às questões ambientais e de eficiência energética. Aliado ao desenvolvimento de fontes e acumuladores de energia com densidades de energia e potência maiores que viabilizam a utilização de veículos elétricos em substituição parcial dos veículos com motores a combustão interna, já surgem comercialmente no mercado alguns modelos de veículos elétricos. Neste contexto, também cresce a necessidade de recursos humanos capacitados e ferramentas auxiliares para o dimensionamento dos componentes dessa nova geração de veículos automotores. Este trabalho apresenta uma metodologia simples e direta de dimensionamento do sistema de tração para veículos elétricos autônomos, bem como os resultados de uma aplicação prática da utilização desta metodologia no desenvolvimento de veículos elétricos fora de estrada para transporte de pessoas e de material. A comparação entre os resultados práticos obtidos com os cálculos realizados mostra que a metodologia, com o equacionamento completo e abrangente apresentado, fornece resultados com excelente exatidão. / The interest in electric vehicles is growing again in recent years, mainly due to environmental concerns and energy efficiency issues. Combined with the development of energy storage devices with higher power and energy densities that enable the use of electric vehicles, some models already appear commercially in the market replacing vehicles with internal combustion engines in specific applications. In this context, it also increases the need for trained human resources and auxiliary tools for designing the components of this new vehicles generation. This dissertation presents a simple and direct methodology of propulsion system design for autonomous electric vehicles as well as the results of a practical application of using this methodology in the development of off-road electric vehicles for people and material transport. The comparison between the practical results obtained with the calculations shows that the methodology, with the complete and comprehensive equations presented, provides results with excellent accuracy.

O interesse por veículos elétricos voltou a crescer nos últimos anos, principalmente, devido às questões ambientais e de eficiência energética. Aliado ao desenvolvimento de fontes e acumuladores de energia com densidades de energia e potência maiores que viabilizam a utilização de veículos elétricos em substituição parcial dos veículos com motores a combustão interna, já surgem comercialmente no mercado alguns modelos de veículos elétricos. Neste contexto, também cresce a necessidade de recursos humanos capacitados e ferramentas auxiliares para o dimensionamento dos componentes dessa nova geração de veículos automotores. Este trabalho apresenta uma metodologia simples e direta de dimensionamento do sistema de tração para veículos elétricos autônomos, bem como os resultados de uma aplicação prática da utilização desta metodologia no desenvolvimento de veículos elétricos fora de estrada para transporte de pessoas e de material. A comparação entre os resultados práticos obtidos com os cálculos realizados mostra que a metodologia, com o equacionamento completo e abrangente apresentado, fornece resultados com excelente exatidão. / The interest in electric vehicles is growing again in recent years, mainly due to environmental concerns and energy efficiency issues. Combined with the development of energy storage devices with higher power and energy densities that enable the use of electric vehicles, some models already appear commercially in the market replacing vehicles with internal combustion engines in specific applications. In this context, it also increases the need for trained human resources and auxiliary tools for designing the components of this new vehicles generation. This dissertation presents a simple and direct methodology of propulsion system design for autonomous electric vehicles as well as the results of a practical application of using this methodology in the development of off-road electric vehicles for people and material transport. The comparison between the practical results obtained with the calculations shows that the methodology, with the complete and comprehensive equations presented, provides results with excellent accuracy.

Submitted by Silvana Teresinha Dornelles Studzinski (sstudzinski) on 2017-03-16T13:17:39Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Claudinilson Alves Luczkiewicz_.pdf: 1630762 bytes, checksum: 2bfd6665aa09c3c9c751c44c759f2463 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-03-16T13:17:39Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Claudinilson Alves Luczkiewicz_.pdf: 1630762 bytes, checksum: 2bfd6665aa09c3c9c751c44c759f2463 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-02-07 / UNISINOS - Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos / Esta pesquisa objetiva explorar a alternativa de propulsão automotiva elétrica e apresentar uma proposta de utilização de equipamentos industriais produzidos em larga escala que possam ser inseridos no subsistema de propulsão de um veículo elétrico com características populares, para, dessa forma, oferecer uma alternativa de rápida inserção dos veículos em centros urbanos. As características de potência e torque da alternativa proposta foram investigadas através da dinâmica longitudinal veicular e dos equipamentos existentes comercializados. São avaliadas três configurações de propulsão, sendo um propulsor elétrico conectado de forma única, com dois propulsores independentes conectados nas rodas traseiras e com quatro propulsores independentes conectados diretamente nas rodas. Foram avaliados também aspectos econômicos, podendo em certos casos apresentar custos atrativos ao consumidor final. Os principais resultados, de acordo com as características técnicas dos equipamentos, a viabilidade econômica e o peso, demonstram que a potência mínima necessária para o desempenho do subsistema de tração deve ser de 33,70 kW com o consumo de energia de 19,10 kWh, estando distribuído na configuração com dois propulsores independentes conectados nas rodas traseiras. / The objective of this study is to explore the alternative of electric automotive propulsion and present a proposal for the use of industrial equipment ever produced on a large scale that can be inserted to the propulsion subsystem of an electric vehicle with popular features, and thus offer an alternative fast integration of vehicles in urban centers. The power and torque characteristics of the alternative proposal were investigated for longitudinal vehicle dynamics and its equipment sold. Three driving settings are evaluated, and an electric thruster connected in a unique way, with two independent propellers connected to the rear wheels and four independent drivers directly connected to the wheels. It is also observed the characteristic of economic viability may present attractive costs to the final consumer. The main results, according to the technical characteristics of the equipment, economic viability and weight, show that the minimum power required for the performance of the traction subsystem should be 33.70 kW with energy consumption of 19.10 kWh and distributed in the configuration with two independent propellers connected to the rear wheels.