E-Vehicle charging – A new wave of power

E-Vehicle charging – A new wave of power

October 9, 2020

As our network of distributors around the world continues to grow, so does our insight in to the key projects requiring protection against the dangers of Lithium-ion battery fires.

We aim to make our blog posts relevant to what is happening in our market space to give our partners and customers an insight to where the action is really starting to heat up.

In this post we are focusing on developments in the e-vehicle charging technology sector and what that could mean when things go wrong. Rapid charging points are already being rolled out by the larger Petroleum brands service stations with a lot of such locations not having any prolonged distractions to offer motorists to occupy themselves while their vehicle charges.

Rapid charging technology is key to continuing to attract the e-motorist who may be running low on charge, with this amount of high voltage energy transfer it is essential that the correct safety provisions are in place which is where our AVD Fire products fit including the 25 and 50 Litre trolley units which offer the best hope to contain fire outbreaks from a reasonable distance until the emergency services arrive. This is a unique opportunity for our partners to position themselves as having access to the correct products to help meet these challenges.

Each charger type has an associated set of connectors which are designed for low- or high-power use, and for either AC or DC charging. The following sections offer a detailed description of the three main charge point types and the different connectors available.

Rapid chargers

• 50 kW DC charging on one of two connector types
• 43 kW AC charging on one connector type
• 100+ kW DC ultra-rapid charging on one of two connector types
• All rapid units have tethered cables
• Charging times vary on unit speed and the vehicle, but a 7 kW charger will recharge a compatible EV with a 40 kWh battery in 4-6 hours, and a 22 kW charger in 1-2 hours. Fast chargers tend to be found at destinations such as car parks, supermarkets, or leisure centres, where you are likely be parked at for an hour or more.
• The majority of fast chargers are 7 kW and untethered, though some home and workplace based units have cables attached.
• Should a cable be tethered to the device, only models compatible with that connector type will be able to use it; e.g. a Type 1 tethered cable could be used by a first-generation Nissan Leaf, but not a second-generation Leaf, which has a Type 2 inlet. Untethered units are therefore more flexible and can be used by any EV with the correct cable.
• Charging rates when using a fast charger will depend on the car’s on-board charger, with not all models able to accept 7 kW or more.
• These models can still be plugged in to the charge point, but will only draw the maximum power accepted by the on-board charger. For example, a Nissan Leaf with a 3.3 kW on-board charger will only draw a maximum of 3.3 kW, even if the fast charge point is 7 kW or 22 kW.
• Tesla’s ‘destination’ chargers provide 11 kW or 22 kW of power but, like the Supercharger network, are intended only or use by Tesla models. Tesla does provide some standard Type 2 chargers at many of its destination locations, and these are compatible with any plug-in model using the compatible connector.

Home charging systems are now also starting to keep up with the pace of faster charging capabilities and with governments green grants available in many parts of the world the take up in e-vehicles has never been higher opening up the home user market for battery fire protection is a natural evolution for our industry.

If there is anyone in any doubt about the ferocity and dangers of an e-vehicle fire under charge the following link will certainly be an eye opener.

https://insideevs.com/news/423581/severe-electric-car-fire-explosion-charging/