Fast DC Charging Infrastructures for Electric Vehicles: Overview of Technologies, Standards, and Challenges

This article is an overview of fast charging for electrical vehicles. Specifically, it analyzes the impact of ultrafast charging stations (UFCSs) on the distribution grid and their role in the smart grids. Moreover, this article defines the framework of UFC, its diffusion, and the associated new trends. The most frequently used converters in the conversion stages of dc charging stations with integrated generation are analyzed. To achieve this goal four active front-end ac–dc converters (unidirectional and bidirectional), three isolated dc–dc converters and two control architectures are explored. In comparing the targeted configurations, the main target is set on categorizing them based on supply voltage level, type of smart grid, and power flow of the converters. Furthermore, this article outlines a broad overview of the main standards for UFCSs and the evaluation of the reliability, data collection, and operation of UFCSs. This article aims to link the needs of the designers of charging stations to the preferences of the commercial market.