Using energy stored in the batteries of electric vehicles to power large buildings not only provides electricity for the building, but also increases the lifespan of the vehicle batteries, new research shows.

Researchers have demonstrated that vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology can take enough energy from idle electric vehicle (EV) batteries to be pumped into the grid and power buildings—without damaging the batteries.

This new research into the potentials of V2G shows that it could actually improve vehicle battery life by around ten percent over a year.

For two years, Kotub Uddin, a senior research fellow at the University of Warwick’s Warwick Manufacturing Group, and his team analyzed some of the world’s most advanced lithium ion batteries used in commercially available EVs—and created one of the most accurate battery degradation models existing in the public domain—to predict battery capacity and power fade over time, under various aging acceleration factors—including temperature, state of charge, current, and depth of discharge.

The researchers used their “smart grid” algorithm to see if they could power WMG’s International Digital Laboratory—a large, busy building which contains a 100-seat auditorium, two electrical laboratories, teaching laboratories, meeting rooms, and approximately 360 people on staff—with energy from EVs parked on the campus.

Given that battery degradation is dependent on calendar age, capacity throughput, temperature, state of charge, current, and depth of discharge, V2G is an effective tool that can optimize a battery’s conditions for minimal degradation. Therefore, taking excess energy from an idle EV to power the grid actually keeps the battery healthier for longer.