A charging station, also called an EV charger, electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) or simply charger is a piece of equipment that supplies electrical power for charging plug-in electric vehicles (including hybrids, neighborhood electric vehicles, trucks, buses, and others ). Although batteries can only be charged with DC power, most electric vehicles have an onboard AC-to-DC converter that allows them to be plugged into a standard household AC electrical receptacle. Inexpensive low-power public charging stations will also provide AC power, known as "AC charging stations". To facilitate higher power charging, which requires much larger AC-to-DC converters, the converter is built into the charging station instead of the vehicle and the station supplies already-converted DC power directly to the vehicle, bypassing the vehicle's onboard converter. These are known as "DC charging stations". Most fully electric car models can accept both AC and DC power. Charging stations provide connectors that conform to a variety of standards. DC charging stations are commonly equipped with multiple connectors to be able to supply a wide variety of vehicles. Public charging stations are typically found street-side or at retail shopping centers, government facilities, and other parking areas.
Charging stations can be placed wherever electric power and adequate parking are available. Residences are by far the most common charging location. Home charging stations typically lack user authentication and separate metering, and may require a dedicated circuit. Some portable EV charging cable can be wall mounted. In addition to home stations, public stations have been sited along highways, in shopping centers, hotels, government facilities and at workplaces. Some gas stations offer basic EV charging stations. Some charging stations have been criticized as inaccessible, hard to find, out of order, and slow, thus slowing EV adoption. Public charge stations may charge a fee or offer free service based on government or corporate promotions. Charge rates vary from residential rates for electricity to many times higher, the premium is usually for the convenience of faster charging. Vehicles can typically be charged without the owner present, allowing the owner to partake in other activities. Sites include malls, freeway rest stops, transit stations, government offices, etc. Typically, AC Type 1/Type 2 plugs are used. Mobile charging involves another vehicle that brings the charge station to the Electric vehicle, the power is supplied via a fuel generator(typically gasoline or diesel), or a large battery. Wireless charging uses inductive charging mats that charge without a wired connection and can be embedded in parking stalls or even on roadways.
A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid. Many power stations contain one or more generators, a rotating machine that converts mechanical power into three-phase electric power. The relative motion between a magnetic field and a conductor creates an electric current. The energy source harnessed to turn the generator varies widely. Most power stations in the world burn fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas to generate electricity. Low-carbon power sources include nuclear power, and an increasing use of renewables such as solar, wind, geothermal, and hydroelectric. Many engine–generators use a reciprocating engine. This can be a steam engine, such as most coal-powered fossil-fuel power plants use. Some engine–generators use a turbine as the engine, such as the industrial gas turbines used in peaking power plants and the microturbines used in some hybrid electric buses. The generator voltage (volts), frequency (Hz) and power (watts) ratings are selected to suit the load that will be connected. Portable power stations may require an external power conditioner to safely operate some types of electronic equipment. Engine-driven generators fueled on natural gas fuel often form the heart of small-scale (less than 1,000 kW) combined heat and power installations.
A solar cell panel, solar electric panel, photo-voltaic (PV) module or solar panel is an assembly of photo-voltaic cells mounted in a framework for installation. Solar panels use sunlight as a source of energy to generate direct current electricity. A collection of PV modules is called a PV panel, and a system of PV panels is called an array. Arrays of a photovoltaic system supply solar electricity to electrical equipment. Photovoltaic modules use light energy (photons) from the Sun to generate electricity through the photovoltaic effect. Most modules use wafer-based crystalline silicon cells or thin-film cells. The structural (load carrying) member of a module can be either the top layer or the back layer. Cells must be protected from mechanical damage and moisture. Most modules are rigid, but semi-flexible ones based on thin-film cells are also available. The cells are usually connected electrically in series, one to another to the desired voltage, and then in parallel to increase current. The power (in watts) of the module is the mathematical product of the voltage (in volts) and the current (in amperes) of the module. The manufacturing specifications on solar panels are obtained under standard condition, which is not the real operating condition the solar panels are exposed to on the installation site.
The Odeyo solar power station in France is the first solar power station in the world to realize solar power generation. Although the power generation was only 64 kilowatts at the time, it laid the foundation for the later research and design of solar power plants. The solar power generation system mainly includes: solar cell components, controllers, batteries, inverters, loads, etc. Among them, the solar cell components and batteries are the power supply system, the controller and the inverter are the control and protection system, and the load is the system terminal. The solar cell module is the core part of the power generation system. Its function is to directly convert the radiant energy of the sun into direct current, which is used by the load or stored in the battery for backup. Generally, according to the needs of users, several solar panels are connected in a certain way to form a solar cell array (array), and then matched with appropriate brackets and junction boxes to form a solar cell module. In the solar power generation system, the basic function of the charge controller is to provide the best charging current and voltage for the battery, charge the battery quickly, smoothly and efficiently, reduce the loss during the charging process, and prolong the service life of the battery as much as possible. It also protects the battery from overcharging and overdischarging. The advanced controller can simultaneously record and display various important data of the system, such as charging current, voltage and so on.
