Emerging Technologies Enhance Efficiency and Speed of EV Charging Stations

The future of urban mobility involves the adoption of a series of new technologies in electric vehicles and their charging infrastructure and many others that are not so new anymore. For some decades now, we have believed in the transition to electric cars as the right future for automobiles. High costs of fossil fuels, both environmental and financial, would make this "novelty" a necessary change. In addition to electric vehicles, emerging technologies in EV charging will contribute towards a more convenient urban life.

Less and less concern about autonomy is contributing to the rapid growth of electric vehicle adoption. As per the reports of Bloomberg NEF back in two years, would be 400 million electric cars on the road by 2040. A recent report raised that estimate to 700 million units from 400 million. New investments, declining EV prices, better range, improvements, and innovation in the electric vehicle charging industry, also enhance the speed and efficiency of electric vehicles as well as charging stations.

Ultra-Fast Charging

Another innovative technology that aims to speed up the performance of charging is ultra-fast charging. To achieve incredibly high charging rates, these systems make use of cutting-edge power electronics, cooling systems, and battery management techniques. Although they are not yet generally available, prototypes have been created that can charge an EV in just a few minutes.

Smart Charging

Smart charging stations are a new way to charge your electric vehicle. Indeed, these recent devices are excellent means of optimizing the recharging of one's car thanks to their connection to the network which allows easier and more appropriate energy management. The smart charging station has the great advantage of allowing its user to manage the energy he wishes to allocate to charging his vehicle, taking into account the electricity needs of other devices in the house or building. running on the same network. This simplified management promotes energy savings and optimizes the charging of the electric car.

The smart charging station is a specific terminal equipped with a suitable module that allows the vehicle, once plugged in, to be connected to the network. The terminal transmits information through the Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connection to a mobile application or a dedicated management platform. This information may relate to the charging time, power, and speed, but also the total capacity of the home network and the needs of other devices in operation. The network manager analyzes them and adapts the charging of the electric vehicle according to the results obtained in order to allow the owner to optimize the charging time while saving energy. Note also that the motorist retains control of his energy in this way.

There are three smart charging station modes.

• Power Sharing
• The PowerBoost
• Dynamic Power Sharing

Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G)

Electric vehicles are now able to both use and return power to the grid thanks to V2G technology. EVs can function as mobile energy storage units thanks to this energy's bidirectional flow. Utilizing the infrastructure of charging stations to discharge electricity during times of high demand and replenish during times of low demand, V2G integration can aid in grid balancing. This two-way communication can enhance system performance and charging rates.

V2G technology implies the possibility of organizing a controlled and bidirectional flow of electrical energy between the vehicle and the electrical network. Electrical energy is supplied from the grid to the car in order to charge the battery. Electrical energy is transferred from the vehicle to the grid when the power company needs energy, for example, to provide peak power. Studies show that vehicles are not used for active transport more than 90% of the time. Therefore, during this time, EV batteries can be used to serve electricity markets without compromising their primary transport function. V2G technology includes the concept of vehicle-to-home (when the electric vehicle is at home) or vehicle-to-building (when the electric vehicle is in a commercial building).

Battery Swapping

The limitations of charging time can be circumvented with the use of battery-switching stations. The drained battery is completely swapped out for a fully charged one, enabling an almost rapid recharge, as opposed to charging the vehicle's battery. Although this technology is still in its infancy and has difficulties with infrastructure and standardization, it has the potential to greatly improve charging efficiency.