Electric vehicle charging: First of a kind National Lab project will simulate fast charging station microgrids Share This IDAHO FALLS — Research by Idaho National Laboratory scientists could help the nation accommodate more electric vehicles, while lessening the impact of vehicle charging on the electrical grid system. Electric vehicle sales have grown rapidly in the last decade with 1.6 million all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles sold between 2010 and 2019. These climate-friendly cars will only get more popular as the newer all-electric vehicles have higher capacity batteries, meaning they can drive further between charging. The availability of charging stations has not kept pace with electric vehicle sales, however and to meet demand 500,000 public charging stations need to be deployed by 2025. Plus, as battery capacity increases, so does the demand for the option for high-power charging, which vastly reduces the charging time.