• • • ELECTRIC VEHICLES • • • Powering net zero: Electrical engineering and the
future of EV charging efficiency By Robert Nash, CTO, Petalite
he UK is committed to reaching net zero by 2050, meaning that the country’s total greenhouse gas emissions need to balance with the emissions removed from the atmosphere, with the express intent to limit global warming. Currently, domestic transport is the largest emitting sector in the UK, accounting for 28 per cent of all greenhouse gas emissions, and so, the Government has prioritised a regulatory framework to reduce emissions. This includes a 2035 mandate for 100 per cent of new vehicles sold to be zero emission electric vehicles (EVs). To support these ambitions, charging technology is of paramount importance. It is key to encouraging wider EV adoption, and ensuring infrastructure can accommodate the increasing demand. While EV charging businesses are rapidly scaling up public charging networks, making it more reliable and more accessible for a growing number of drivers, it is engineers who play a crucial role in making the UK’s goals a reality. To put this into context, at the end of April 2025, there were over 1,500,000 fully electric cars in the UK, accounting for 4.41 per cent of cars on the road. This number will need to rise significantly as we approach the 2035 government zero emission vehicle goal. However, it is not just the case of putting more vehicles on the road. The infrastructure needs to be robust enough to support this rollout, including targeting a total of 300,000 public charge points by
T
2030. As of May 1, 2025, there were 79,000 public EV charging points, meaning an additional 221,000 will need to be installed in the next five years if we are to meet this objective. So, the pressure is on to scale up the necessary infrastructure, with reliable technology and accessible, easy to use chargers being essential factors.
Addressing EV adoption barriers Issues such as range anxiety, the fear of running out of charge without a charge point nearby, continue to be a barrier among a huge swathe of drivers, with 78 per cent of future EV owners feeling high levels of range anxiety, which is impacting on the take-up of EV vehicles. In addition, up to 40 per cent of UK homes lack private parking for a charge point to be installed. A reliable and widespread charging network is vital for people to feel confident in their ability to charge their vehicle in public spaces and switch to driving electric. The reliability of existing charging infrastructure,
often referred to as ‘charge anxiety’ also poses barriers to wider EV adoption.
A 2024 study of EV users identified common issues faced by drivers when trying to charge their vehicles, which included charge points being occupied by another vehicle (26 per cent), charging stations being out of order (24 per cent) and charging stations not functioning properly (21 per cent).
To address these challenges, the industry needs to do more than just build and install chargers. It needs to seek out and adopt next generation technology which is designed and engineered to be more than ‘fit for purpose.’ Technology that is innovative and pioneering. Technology that will transform the charging experience, set the standard for energy efficiency and future proof the UK’s public charging network.
Engineering for scalability One major advancement is patented sinusoidal direct current (SDC) technology. Based on the principal that complexity is the enemy of reliability, SDC technology simplifies power conversion compared to other charging solutions to optimise charger dependability and scalability for evolving needs.
SDC technology combines the power factor front end of AC with the DCDC conversion stage, simplifying the implementation. Using Silicon Carbide (SiC) MOSFET technology and a proprietary high power high frequency (HPHF) transformer, designed in-house by our engineers, each of the three phases are combined to create a DC output with reduced ripple.
This simplified technology will provide a faster and more reliable charging experience and, importantly, it makes better use of site power, allowing more vehicles to be serviced simultaneously. New generation charging infrastructure using SDC technology and built with a distributed architecture will not only be vital in encouraging wider EV adoption by making the charging process quick and simple; this scalable infrastructure will easily grow in line with the increasing demand.
A Net Zero future
The UK government has set ambitious goals for decarbonising transport as part of its journey to net zero. These come with complex challenges and tight deadlines. A successful transition requires bold thinking and rapid innovation in the EV charging space. Fortunately, the UK is home to exceptional engineering talent that is more than ready to seize the opportunity to help shape the future. For visionary engineers, this is more than a technical challenge, it is a once-in-a-generation opportunity. True engineers are the visionaries who imagine, and build solutions for a better world, who create a legacy, unencumbered by what has gone before. Helping to shape the future of sustainable transport isn’t just exciting, it is profoundly meaningful.
24 ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING • JUNE 2025
electricalengineeringmagazine.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
