Solar-charge your car: EV charging can be aligned with renewables by providing pro-environmental information on a smartboard

Celina Kacperski; Melanie Vogel; Florian Kutzner; Mona Bielig; Soroush Karimi Madahi; Lieven Demolder; Matthias Strobbe; Sonja Klingert

arXiv · 2504.09542

Solar-charge your car: EV charging can be aligned with renewables by providing pro-environmental information on a smartboard

Celina Kacperski·Melanie Vogel·Florian Kutzner·Mona Bielig·Soroush Karimi Madahi·Lieven Demolder·Matthias Strobbe·Sonja Klingert

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Abstract

Integrating electric vehicle (EV) charging with renewable energy production is essential for reducing the transport sector's carbon footprint, but effective and scalable strategies to align individual charging behavior with renewable supply remain underexplored. This quasi-experimental field study tests whether real-time prescriptive informational cues can influence EV drivers to charge during periods of high renewable energy availability. A smartboard displaying dynamic "charge green now" and "charge later" signals based on local photovoltaic forecasts and market prices was installed at a semi-residential charging facility in Ghent, Belgium. Hourly charging data (N = 619 days) were analyzed using a difference-in-differences design of lamp states between control-intervention garages at pre-trial and during-trial. Results are consistent with a behavioral effect of the "charge green now" smartboard lamps increasing number of charging operations and the total kWh charged during renewable-rich periods, without financial incentives. Emission modelling estimates that charging at the hours observed during the trial was associated with approximately 20% lower CO2-equivalent emissions compared with baseline charging patterns. These findings suggest that non-financial interventions, i.e., providing salient, real-time prescriptive information, may meaningfully contribute to demand-side flexibility in EV charging. The study offers practical insights for designing non-financial demand response mechanisms and offers a scalable, cost-effective method for reducing greenhouse gas emissions of EVs.

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Celina Kacperski, Melanie Vogel, Florian Kutzner, Mona Bielig, Soroush Karimi Madahi, Lieven Demolder, Matthias Strobbe, Sonja Klingert. 2025-04-13. Solar-charge your car: EV charging can be aligned with renewables by providing pro-environmental information on a smartboard. https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.09542

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