• • • ELECTRIC VEHICLES • • •
Meeting the challenges of installing and testing electric vehicle charging stations
The incredible growth in e-mobility is being driven chiefly by improving battery technology, the pledge by many countries to achieve ‘net zero’ in terms of carbon emissions, and automotive manufacturers “ramping up” the production of new EV models that offer users a more reliable driving experience, says Hans-Dieter Schuessele, application & technology expert at Fluke.
here are currently around 20 million passenger electric vehicles (EVs) in use around the world (according to Bloomberg’s Annual Electrical Vehicle Outlook 2022), as well as 1.3 million commercial EVs – buses, delivery vans, trucks – and over 280 million electric mopeds, scooters, motorcycles and three-wheelers.
T
Electric vehicle supply equipment
As the EV market accelerates, the aim is to increase distances between charges as much as possible. At the same time, there is a need to boost accessibility to electric vehicle supply equipment, particularly publicly available electric vehicle charging stations (EVCSs).
In its Global EV Outlook 2022, the International Energy Agency (IEA) states that while most EV
Fast and accurate
measurements To meet the demands of this burgeoning market, electricians and installation engineers need to have greater access to the right tools during commissioning and routine maintenance. These tools would include the latest electrical testers, insulation testers, thermal cameras and electric vehicle supply equipment testers. The goal is to enable technicians to carry out fast, accurate measurements for efficient checks and troubleshooting.
One of the specific challenges of AC Mode 3 fast charging stations – which provide accelerated charging of 3.7 kW to 22 kW – is that they provide a one or three phase supply with a mains voltage at 230 Volts or 400 Volts, so it is essential to retain the highest levels of safety when installing, testing and maintaining an advanced EVCS. Vitally important is the need to ensure reliable communication between the charging station and the EV for there to be an available output voltage.
To achieve this, an EVCS adapter needs to be used which can simulate an EV being attached to the charger and test its output voltage with connector types 1 and 2 in accordance with the IEC/HD 60364-7-722 and IEC/EN 61851-1 standards. Other tests that technicians need to carry out can include checking the continuity of conductors, insulation resistance, automatic disconnection of supply (loop impedance, RCD or RDC-DD test) and functional tests. These can all be carried out using a multifunction installation tester (MFT).
Troubleshooting and commissioning
Other tools that electricians and installation engineers need access to in order to cope with the proliferation of EVCSs include voltage testers, clamp meters or open fork testers capable of carrying out voltage and current measurements without the need for test leads.
Likewise, modern digital insulation resistance testers are ideal for insulation troubleshooting and
charging takes place at residences and workplaces, there were nearly 1.8 million publicly accessible charging points in place in 2021, of which a third were fast chargers.
Nearly 500,000 chargers were installed in that
year, more than the total number of public chargers that were in situ just four years previously. In 2021, the IEA says, EVCSs capable of fast charging increased by 48% compared to 43% the year before while the growth in slow chargers fell from 46% in 2020 to 33% a year later. China is leading the way in publicly available EVCSs, accounting for around 85% of the world’s fast chargers and 55% of slow chargers. In Europe there were more than 300,000 slow chargers in 2021 (an annual increase of 30%).
This breaks down into the Netherlands having over 80,000 slow chargers, France 50,000, Germany 40,000, the UK 30,000, Italy 20,000 and slightly more than 12,000 in both Sweden and Norway.
40 ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING • FEBRUARY 2023
electricalengineeringmagazine.co.uk
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