Electric Car Charger

The world has seen many advancements in the recent times. Technology and its applications have made our lives comfortable. But there are some new technologies which are categorised as need of the hour. They not only make life comfortable but also save our lives as well as the mother Earth. Electric Vehicles fall in this category. It is a much-discussed revolution in the last decade and its implementation is an immediate necessity. The over-dependence and over usage of fossil fuels and oils has made them become extinct. They are the major participants in the occurrence of Greenhouse effect and Global Warming. The Earth’s temperature has increased by 2-3 degrees at an average in the past few years. Scientists predict these temperatures can increase more which is a misery. Thus, the emergence of new technology which can counter all these miseries is always a welcoming change. So, the world has keenly observed and got ready to adapt to this change of vehicles from fuel to Electricity. For this to happen, the main thing we need to understand is the process which is going to change. How do the electric cars get charged? And is it viable?

Charging of Electric Cars:

Like the fuel is filled in the tank, the battery of the EVs has to be charged to run it. It is not much different from our charging our regular electric appliances. The battery has to be refilled by charging and this current in the battery is used to run the machinery which is responsible for the movement of the vehicle. Not only the fuel system but the engine working procedure of the automobiles have to be changed according to the new technology. Though this is a time taking and bitter process, its end result is good.

There are certain levels in the system of charging electric cars. They are the AC and DC type systems. There also exist certainlevels of charging which varies with the choice of the customer.

The Process of Charging the Electric Cars:

Like the petrol filling station, there are Charging Stations established everywhere in the country so that consumers have access to the charge points wherever they go. One thing which is a great comfort for the public is that they can set up the charging point at their home also. There are certain measures to be taken to install a set up at their own workplace, house, any public place or etc. This is not a possibility in the case of fuel filling stations.

The EVSE (Electronic Vehicle Charging Equipment) charges around $700 and it is a fixed or permanent set up. The required power input has to be supplied to make this equipment work and then we can use this equipment any time.

The charging of an Electric Vehicle has to be facilitated either by an AC or a DC supply depending on the type of vehicle. There are 3 levels each in both the processes. They all differ in the voltage and charging rate with which the supply is given. The time is taken for charging also changes with the type of supply. Different chargers take different time.

For Example:

For running a vehicle for 100 Km,

DC 50 kW supply (400-500V, 125A) takes 20-30 minutes

DC 120 KW (300-600V, 350A) takes 10 minutes

AC single phase, 3.3 KW (230V, 16A) takes around 6-8 hours

AC three phase, 11KW (400V, 16A) takes 2 hours.

AC three phase, 43 KW (400V, 63A) takes 20-30 minutes.

So, these all change when the voltage, charging rate and type of the supply is changed. The AC type cars also need an additional equipment of AC-DC converter. The battery only receives a DC supply and hence the AC has to be converted to DC.

But the sources of DC are not available everywhere because their maintenance is very risky. Hence, we cannot afford to use them in our households but they can be available at charging stations which can maintain them with all the required measures.

The emergence of the EV in India is yet to take place, but the establishment of charging stations by EVteQ in MUMBAI has seen the rise in awareness as well as spirit in transforming to EVs. There were quite a few EVs in India but lack of enough charging stations is a disadvantage for them. The initiation of companies like TESLA has created a great impact in the field of automobiles and we are going to see many such companies getting inspired and entering the market soon. This change has to be welcomed all over the world and we all should feel responsible for making this a revolution so that there are no cars running on fossil fuels anymore. The process might take many years but a proper initiation took and awareness spread can make the change happen.