Decoding High-Power Charging

T he beginning of this year has witnessed remarkable growth  in  the global NEV market. As a  critical  new infrastructure, charging piles are being deployed at an accelerated pace, with their scale continuously expanding. According to the latest data, taking China as an example, by January 2025, the cumulative number of charging infrastructure in China was 13.213 million, up 49.1% year-on-year. Among them, high-power charging is becoming a new bright spot in China charging pile industry.

1  Definition of high-power charging

High-power charging pile, as its name implies, is a charging device with high-power output capability. Compared with the traditional charging pile, its most prominent advantage lies in significantly reducing charging time .

High-power charging represents a charging technology  with high-power output, which is mainly used for fast charging. Generally,  the greater the charging power, the shorter the charging time, and the charging power depends on the vehicle OBC (on-board charger) for AC charging or BMS(Battery Management System) for DC charging). Before charging commences, communication between the vehicle and the charging equipment is checked and confirmed, with one key aspect being the charging power the vehicle can accept .

At present, high-power charging mainly aims at increasing the charging current without raising the vehicle's overall voltage platform . However, when the charging current rises, the calorific value of terminals and cables surges rapidly , which will lead to a sharp increase in temperature, potentially damaging  the electronic components of the charging device and even cause a serious fire - related  safety accident.

2  Working principle of high-power charging

• • High-voltage or high-current output: By increasing the charging voltage or charging current, or both, the amount of electricity delivered to the battery per unit time is increased. For example, traditional charging may use lower voltage and current, such as 5V/2A; High-power charging may use higher voltage, such as 800V or even 1000V, or larger current, such as 800A and 1500A, etc.

2.2 Optimize the design of charging circuit: Advanced power management chips and circuit topologies, such as the PFC + LLC architecture, are adopted . It can improve charging efficiency, reduce energy loss, and ensure that charging equipment can still maintain high conversion efficiency and stability under the condition of high-power output.

2.3 Intelligent charging management: with the help of intelligent chips and algorithms, real-time monitoring of battery status, such as power, voltage, temperature, etc. Based on the battery's actual condition , the charging parameters are automatically adjusted to implement charging modes like constant-current, constant-voltage current-limiting, and constant-voltage floating charging. This guarantees the safety and efficiency of the charging process. .

3  Advantages of high-power charging

3.1 Shortened charging time: This is the most significant advantage of high-power charging. For example, in the field of NEV sector, it can replenish the power of electric heavy trucks by over 60% within 15 minutes . For regular NEVs, it only takes 15 minutes to charge from 20% to 80% .

3.2 Enhanced User Convenience : High-power charging reduces users' waiting time during the charging process. This makes the use of EVs and other devices more convenient, improves travel efficiency, and alleviates “range anxiety”

3.3 Improve operational efficiency: In the fields of logistics and transportation, EVs can be quickly replenished and put into the next transportation task, which improves the operational efficiency of the logistics fleets and reduces the operating cost.

4. Application scenarios of high-power charging

4.1 Public charging stations: In public places such as expressway service areas and large parking lots, high-power charging piles enable quick charging of electric vehicles, minimizing waiting  time.

4.2 Logistics transportation: In long-distance transportation, high-power charging significantly reduces charging time and improves transportation efficiency.

5. Technical types of high-power charging

5.1 Liquid-cooled charging technology: Liquid-cooled charging technology uses coolant to cool heating equipment during charging, such as charging guns and cables. This method can effectively control the temperature during charging, allowing for the use of thinner cables, and ensure the safety of charging equipment and vehicles. Tesla's V3 Supercharger uses this liquid-cooling technology.

5.2 800V high-voltage architecture: Many newly developed EVs, such as Porsche Taycan, feature an 800V high-voltage electrical system. This high voltage system can significantly reduce the charging time. Under the same power, a higher the voltage results in a lower current, thereby decreasing energy loss and heat generation during charging .

5.3 High-power charging piles: High-power charging piles can provide strikingly high charging power. For example, a 350kW charging pile can charge 80% of the battery within 15 minutes. These charging piles usually support multiple standards, such as CHAdeMO, CCS, GB/T, etc., to ensure compatibility with different vehicles.

5.4 Battery management system (BMS): Battery management system plays a key role in high-power charging. It can monitor the state of the battery, such as temperature, voltage and charge level , and ensure a safe and efficient charging process. BMS can optimize the charging strategy to avoid battery overheating or overcharge, thus extending battery lifespan .

6. Challenges in high-power charging

• • Heat Dissipation

With the increase of charging power, the equipment's heat dissipation requirements become more demanding . For example, when a 480 kW charging pile runs at full power, its heat dissipation needs exceed 20 kW. In heavy - duty truck charging areas, which require high-power and long - term operation, more effective heat dissipation and higher equipment reliability are essential. In the field of heat dissipation, the three main technologies are the traditional direct ventilation method, independent air ducts, and liquid cooling. Among these, independent air ducts and liquid cooling offer relatively high protection levels .

• • Overall efficiency

Due to the high-power, the problem of efficiency will become more obvious, which will affect the heat dissipation and the economic benefits of the whole station. In the field of power change, in addition to the optimization of topology and system level, the application of new semiconductor devices, such as silicon carbide devices, is also very critical. However, at present, the application of silicon carbide devices still faces some challenges, including cost, demand for high-frequency driving, design of supporting magnetic devices, heat dissipation and short-circuit protection.

• • Noise

Noise will affect the experience of charging users and the location of the station. Especially in some scenes with high noise requirements, noisy equipment cannot be used, or the use and installation are restricted, for example, corresponding measures need to be equipped to reduce the impact of noise. In noise control, fan layout, air duct design and the use of sound insulation and sound absorption materials are all key factors, which jointly affect the noise level.

• • power grids

The wide application of high-power DC charging will have an impact on the power grid. It leads to a significant increase in power grid load. Especially in shopping malls, residential areas and other scenes, the power grid capacity is limited, and access to high-power charging equipment usually requires additional capacity expansion. The power grid capacity expansion in these areas is not only difficult, but also costly. The rapid power rise and fall of high-power charging leads to the intensification of power grid fluctuation, which poses a challenge to power grid stability. This rapid power change may affect the peak-valley characteristics of the power grid, increase the peak-valley difference, and may also lead to the change of peak-valley time, thus affecting the economic benefits of station operation.

• • Power distribution

In terms of power distribution capacity, cable laying and other engineering applications, a 360kW/480kW may be more than 3 /4 times that of a 120kW charging device, so many 360kW/480kW have chosen the "station-in-station" or demonstration station, such as Tesla V3.

7. Development trend of high-power charging

First, liquid cooling heat dissipation technology is becoming the standard configuration of high-power charging equipment to improve heat dissipation efficiency and equipment life.

Second, intelligent and interconnection technologies are gradually maturing. Through the Internet of Things (IoT) , big data and artificial intelligence technologies, charging pile operators can realize remote monitoring, fault diagnosis and dynamic pricing of equipment and improve operational efficiency.

Third, high-power charging piles will place greater emphasis on compatibility and versatility . It can adapt to NEVs of different brands, models and specifications, breaking down the barriers between vehicles and charging piles and providing users with a more convenient charging experience.

Fourth, h igh - power charging will see closer integration with renewable energy sources. Using solar and wind energy to power charging piles enables truly green charging, further reducing carbon emissions and promoting sustainable energy development .