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Challenges ahead
The biggest challenge on the
road to electrification is
infrastructure. In the United States,
Germany, Japan and China, the
infrastructure to support a large
number of DC charging stations,
especially high-power stations, does
not yet exist.
If, for example, EV owners starting
out on a holiday weekend were to all
charge their cars at the very same
time, in many regions this will cause
excessive demands on the power
grid. Industry leaders need to work
with governments and electric
power utilities to plan for future
support of electric vehicles. Every
three EVs sold will be have the
similar e ect of adding one new
household to electrical demand.
Another challenge to the industry
is the high level of power required
for DC fast charging. For a 350kW
charging station, engineers must
design for very high currents,
including a thick charging cable.
However, the cable cannot be so
heavy that consumers cannot
handle the nozzle, which limits the
size of the cable, which in turn
increases the resistance and the
heat. Designers must therefore find
a means to cool the cable. What’s
more, designers must protect
consumers and equipment from the
risk of electric shock, fire, arc-flash,
and explosion.
Lack of standardization is also an
issue. Di erent companies and
organizational bodies are working to
a number of di erent standards. In
principle, di ering standards across
regions are not a big issue, because
EV drivers will not drive from Japan
to Germany. Theoretically, if there
is standardization within each region
such as the Americas, Europe, and
Asia, the industry can move forward.
However, having di erent
standards limits the economies of
scale. Vehicles and charging
stations in di erent regions will need
di erent components, and therefore
the industry will not achieve the
same economies of scale as it could
achieve by having one universal set
of standards.
The introduction of new
infrastructure hardware is seeing
new product design and usage.
Here, there are several areas of
concern including safety, reliability,
and future-proofing.
When it comes to electrical safety,
high-power DC charging is a
completely new application.
Presently, only qualified, trained
technicians are allowed to approach
electrical equipment that carries
high power, and they must wear
safety apparel. Charging stations are
used by the general public, including
outdoors in the rain, which increases
the danger of electric shock and
faults. Pioneering engineering
160 // January 2020 // www.electrichybridvehicletechnology.com
Smarter electrical
components are
critical to support
EV development
solutions must be developed that
keep consumers safe.
In contrast to consumer devices
such as laptops that typically have
a lifetime of three to five years,
high-power DC charging stations
are expensive, so buyers need them
to last for 10 years or more, in order
to get a return on investment.
Therefore, it is critical that the
electrical components specified for
a charging station can survive harsh
outdoor environmental and
operating conditions. While the
charging stations are not located on
a vehicle, and therefore automotiverated
components are not required,
many specifiers will still seek
equivalent reliability.
Power, as measured in watts, is
the product of voltage and current.
The easiest way to design for higher
current is to increase the thickness
of the cables. However, due to the
limit to the weight that consumers
can handle, the only option is to
increase the voltage. The
expectation is that DC fast charging
stations will operate at 1,000 volts at
the nozzle. High voltage, along with
highly e icient power conversion,
will enable designers to reduce
system size and use less expensive
cooling methods. However, with the
increased voltage escalates it the
risk of fault and shock, so designers
will need to develop fool-proof
safety strategies.
As other industries have shown in
the past, fast adoption and demand
can drive improvements that solve
current challenges and political
regulations. The EV industry must
be ready for accelerated demand.
How smart electric vehicle charging technology and
engineering will make the electric future possible
The EV industry must address multiple roadblocks ranging from infrastructure issues to standardization and safety
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