Flexible Power for Future Zero-Emissions Shipping and Delivery

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In a medium size North American city, people drive collectively one billon kilometers yearly to acquire goods and food, leading to over 300,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Studies show the potential benefit of switching to online shopping and home delivery, with up to 87% reduction in emissions. Last-mile transportation (within the city, the last link in the supply chain) contributes up to 50% of those emissions. In response to this, governments and companies envision the electrification of delivery, using EVs from trucks to small robots. Further, COVID-19 has accelerated this trend. This opportunity to increase use of EVs for delivery can offset GHG emission, reduce driving, and curtail traffic. Two elements are critical to realize a Zero-Emissions Shipping and Delivery: 1) ultra-efficient fast chargers and on-board power conversion for delivery EVs, 2) a dedicated powering infrastructure. This program addresses flexible battery charging infrastructure for the future of goods delivery. The short-term objectives are to research and prototype advanced charging infrastructures that will enable zero-emissions parcel delivery. This has to be flexible and scalable, to be deployed at strategic locations and to adjust to seasonal demand or unexpected events (such as e-commerce growth due to COVID-19). The innovative part of this program is the use of novel topologies, semiconductor, and architectures to enable intelligent operating modes including Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) and Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G). Finally, specific R&D will define optimal size and usage of stationary storage at the charging facilities to offset peak loads. The long-term research aims to the implementation of city-scale charging systems that enable zero-emissions delivery of goods with a clear set of goals: accelerate the electrification of home-delivery systems and provide significant reduction in GHG emissions; deploy technologies to integrate energy storage (EVs) into the electric grid to mitigate peak consumption and smooth the intermittence of renewable resources; facilitate access to goods with reduced pollution by replacing cars and driving. The results of this program will allow business flexible scaling and utilization of assets, decreasing the cost of ownership of EV fleets. The program targets HQP training in the area of energy storage and EVs while developing IP for Canadian industries. Anticipating the high demand for engineers at all levels of EV charging infrastructure, it will deliver graduates with strong R&D skills to Canada. The program fits into the government's strategy on science and technology by accelerating the reduction of GHG emissions and providing key infrastructure for EVs. This is an unprecedented time (COVID pandemic) with dramatic acceleration of e-commerce and goods delivery. The program meets NSERC's objectives by bringing originality and innovation to address this pressing area and opportunity in modern society.