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The market for e-cars is booming, but there is still a lot to do in terms of charging technology. The ÖAMTC tests four of the most common vehicle models. The experts came to the conclusion that the battery does not contain as much energy as is drawn and paid for from the socket.
The charging technologies for e-vehicles are getting better and better, the energy densities of the battery cells are increasing and thus the ranges are also increasing. However, a current study by the ÖAMTC at four different large vehicle manufacturers shows that the range of charging losses is surprisingly high – namely seven to ten percent.
Oliver Weber, technical director of the ÖAMTC Carinthia: “One reason is that we have a loss in the line, in the cable, when the electrons flow. We also have a loss in the vehicle because we usually fill up with alternating current, which has to be converted into direct current. That’s where you have the biggest loss.”
Loading times can be halved
The EnerCharge company, a subsidiary of AAE Naturstrom from Kötschach-Mauthen, produces and researches charging technology. The products are now sold from Sweden to Israel. According to Managing Director Jens Winkler, the charging stations have already reached a good level of efficiency. “On the charging technology side, we are dealing with charging losses of significantly less than five percent. Between the power supply and the filling in terms of efficiency at one to three percent, but then it stops.”
Winkler said he believes loading speeds will continue to increase. “We are on the road with 400 kilometers, which can be recharged in half an hour or 40 minutes. You can halve that.”
Loading without loss unthinkable
Winkler still sees great potential for innovation in battery technology and on the part of vehicle manufacturers. According to experts, charging without losses will probably never be physically possible. In a technology comparison, however, e-vehicles are clearly ahead. With a combustion engine, the efficiency is around 30 percent, with an electric vehicle around 90 percent.