Question
In August, General Motors announced that by 2026 all of its Ultium-based EVs will be equipped with bidirectional charging, enabling them to be used as “virtual power plants” with this technology. For 10 points each:
[10h] Name this technology that allows idle electric cars to store or send energy back into a nation’s power system. It is often known by an initialism consisting of two letters and a number.
ANSWER: vehicle-to-grid [or V2G; accept vehicle-to-home or V2H]
[10e] As V2G technologies become more popular, grids may be stabilized by EV-filled parking lots fitted with “canopies” of these devices made of photovoltaic cells.
ANSWER: solar panels [or solar cell panels or solar electric panels or photovoltaic modules or PV modules]
[10m] In 2022, this company became the nation’s first to offer a V2G export compensation mechanism. This largest American utilities company by revenue filed for bankruptcy in 2019 after being assigned blame for the 2017-to-2018 Northern California wildfires.
ANSWER: Pacific Gas and Electric Company [or PG&E]
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Summary
| 2024 ACF Regionals @ Cornell | 01/27/2024 | Y | 3 | 10.00 | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| 2024 ACF Regionals @ JMU | 01/27/2024 | Y | 9 | 14.44 | 100% | 44% | 0% |
| 2024 ACF Regionals @ Minnesota | 01/27/2024 | Y | 2 | 20.00 | 100% | 100% | 0% |
| 2024 ACF Regionals @ Nebraska | 01/27/2024 | Y | 5 | 10.00 | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| 2024 ACF Regionals @ Ohio State | 01/27/2024 | Y | 2 | 15.00 | 100% | 50% | 0% |
| 2024 ACF Regionals @ Rutgers | 01/27/2024 | Y | 5 | 12.00 | 100% | 20% | 0% |
| 2024 ACF Regionals @ Imperial | 01/27/2024 | Y | 8 | 10.00 | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| 2024 ACF Regionals @ Vanderbilt | 01/27/2024 | Y | 5 | 16.00 | 100% | 60% | 0% |
Data
| Michigan State A | Claremont A | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Texas A | Iowa A | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Sorbonne | UW A | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Appalachian State | Texas A&M A | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Texas A&M B | UBC A | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |