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Returning Power From Electric Cars To the Grid

Posted by timothy on from the electrifying-news dept.

First time accepted submitter icensnow writes "NRG is patenting a means of returning electric power from charged but inactive electric cars to the grid, essentially turning parked electric cars into an energy storage system for the grid. I'm having a hard time deciding if this is genius or silly."

1 of 247 comments (clear)

  1. Re:This raises a question I've always had by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    I don't know much about batteries. However, I do own and drive a hybrid every day.

    My hybrid does not plug in. From what I understand it can charge it's battery in one of these ways:

    1) gas engine
    2) coasting
    3) braking

    I don't know if my battery somehow loses charge when i'm not driving it. I do know that if it does, it is not noticeable.

    If my car is operating properly, the battery charge level is always around 50%. When I leave work at the end of the day, the battery is essentially where it was when I got to work in the morning (IE, if there is a difference I can't notice it).

    I drive a 110 mile round trip commute each day and put 1,100 miles on my car every 2 weeks. That's just business driving. That doesn't count personal trips and whatnot.

    I can say for certain that if there is a loss in battery charge that my car is still worth it as I'm saving a lot of money in gas. I could not make my commute each day in any other traditional car that I could think of.

    With that said, if they can figure out how to take the power from my car without affecting my miles per tank (or compensate me if they do affect it), i'm all for it. Otherwise, get lost.