Feasibility study of a PV-grid-assisted charging station for electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles under uncertain arrivals

The study addresses the growing need for sustainable transportation solutions by proposing a comprehensive charging infrastructure that leverages renewable energy sources, grid connectivity, and hydrogen storage. It presents a feasibility study of a Photovoltaic (PV)-Grid Assisted Charging Station designed to accommodate both Electric Vehicles (EVs) and Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles (HFCVs), with a focus on considering the uncertainty in vehicle arrivals. The assessment incorporates uncertainty modeling for vehicle arrivals, considering factors such as random, evenly, and normally distributed arrivals. The analysis highlights the infrastructure requirements and potential challenges in integrating with grid networks. It also emphasizes the importance of optimal sizing of the grid-connected PV-hydrogen storage system using an improved search space reduction (ISSR) technique to optimize energy utilization and ensure efficient operation. The system is optimized for sizing with the arrival of vehicles randomly, featuring a capacity of 391 kW of PV and a 54 kg hydrogen gas tank with an LCOE of $ 0.3209. In the same optimized system, vehicle arrivals following uniform and normal distributions were tested. They exhibited a noteworthy level of rigidity and resilience in response to variations in stability parameters, with an LCOE value of $ 0.3164 for uniform and $ 0.3154 for normal distribution.