Charging Time
The battery capacity of a fully charged electric vehicle is about 20 kWh, providing it with an electrical autonomy of about 100 kilometres; chargeable hybrid vehicles have capacity of roughly 3 to 5 kWh, for an electrical autonomy of 20 to 40 kilometres (the gasoline engine ensures the autonomy of a conventional vehicle).
As this autonomy is still limited, the vehicle has to be charged every 2 or 3 days on average. In practice, drivers charge their vehicles every 1 or 2 days on average.
For normal charging (3 kW), car manufacturers have built a battery charger into the car. A charging cable is used to connect it to the electrical network to supply 230 volt AC current. For quicker charging (22 kW, even 43 kW and more), manufacturers have chosen two solutions: - use the vehicle's built-in charger, designed to charge from 3 to 43 kW at 230 V single-phase or 400 V three-phase. - use an external charger, which converts AC current into DC current and charges the vehicle at 50 kW.
| Charging time | Power supply | Voltage | Max current |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6–8 hours | Single phase - 3,3 kW | 230 VAC | 16 A |
| 2–3 hours | Three phase - 10 kW | 400 VAC | 16 A |
| 3–4 hours | Single phase - 7 kW | 230 VAC | 32 A |
| 1–2 hours | Three phase - 24 kW | 400 VAC | 32 A |
| 20–30 minutes | Three phase - 43 kW | 400 VAC | 63 A |
| 20–30 minutes | Direct current - 50 kW | 400 - 500 VDC | 100 - 125 A |
The user finds charging an electric vehicle as simple as connecting a normal electrical appliance; however to ensure that this operation takes place in complete safety, the charging system must perform several safety functions and dialogue with the vehicle during connection and charging.
Read more about this topic: Charging Station
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