One of the biggest challenges in further developing the market for electric and plug-in hybrid cars is to make further progress in terms of charging times so that these vehicles are quickly self-sufficient for their users.
This is why it is possible today to find powerful and fast charging stations whose main characteristic is to charge an electric car in record time. These types of charging systems are most often made available on public roads, but individuals can also benefit from fast charging stations at home.
What is a fast and powerful charging station?
Several types of charging stations are available on the market for private individuals and professionals who wish to equip themselves with an individual charging system in order to easily charge their electric or plug-in hybrid car, at home or at the workplace.
The charging stations are distinguished mainly by their power, from 3.7 kW to 22 kW (power that can be described as normal), charging stations intended more for individuals, from 50 kW (we speak of charging stations fast) for individuals but also professionals whose charging needs are significant (recharging a fleet of vehicles, the cars of their employees, customers, visitors, etc.). There are also so-called ultra-fast charging stations that deploy a power of 150 kW, even 350 kW and much more.
The power of a charging station mainly determines the charging time of an electric car. The higher this power, the shorter the charging time. This is why the powerful and fast charging stations are particularly aimed at motorists who often and regularly cover many kilometers and long distances, and at professionals.
When choosing the power of your charging station, in addition to your needs in terms of charging time, you must also take into account the type of your electric vehicle, and more specifically the capacities of your battery. The latter can, in fact, accept a fast and powerful charging station, or not, because it has a maximum charging power. For example, the battery of an electric car with a power of 7 kW can only support a charging station of the same maximum power. Thus, you will not be able to recharge your vehicle with this power more quickly with a 50 kW charging station.
Fast and powerful charging stations are most often those found in charging areas made available in public areas, on highways, etc., which allow charging an electric vehicle while roaming.
Given the strong development of the electric car market, and the progress made on these vehicles, these fast and powerful charging stations should be made available more and more to individuals who want to equip their home with an individual charging system. .
Models of fast and powerful charging stations
Choosing to equip yourself with a fast and powerful charging station therefore depends on the desired charging time, but above all on your electric vehicle model.
With this type of charging station, the user of an electric car has the possibility of benefiting from very short charging times: approximately 3 hours to access total autonomy, and even 30 minutes or a few minutes for charging stations. ultra-fast charging, the most powerful.
It should be noted, however, that these fast charging stations, and especially the most efficient of them, require a connection to the specific electricity network, requiring in principle fairly heavy work. This is why it is still complicated for individuals to equip themselves with this type of home charging station.
In addition, fast and powerful charging stations require their users to equip themselves with a special socket to be connected to the electrical network. There are several models for these sockets: fast charges called AC or DC, Combo, or even CHAdeMO, as well as “Superchargers” distributed by the automotive brand Tesla.
Regarding fast and powerful charging stations, the most efficient on the market today is the “Terra 360”, a charging system developed by the Swiss company ABB, which will be marketed very soon, offers a power of 360 kW in direct current . Result: this charging station can charge an electric car in 15 minutes, or reach a range of 100 km in 5 minutes. Another feature of this charging station, the most powerful in the world at the moment, is that it can charge up to 4 vehicles at the same time.
Although this is a remarkable advancement in charging, few electric cars today are compatible with this remarkable power. Indeed, the batteries of the most efficient of them can generally only support a maximum power of 200 kW.
Alongside this type of ultra-fast and powerful charging stations, individuals nevertheless have the possibility of equipping their homes with a high-performance charging system which gives very good results in terms of charging time, particularly with charging stations, called wallboxes, with a power of 22 kW, the maximum power of this type of charging system currently available, in particular for private individuals, which requires a three-phase alternating current connection.