Ultra-fast charging of electric vehicles: A review of power electronics converter, grid stability and optimal battery consideration in multi-energy systems

The concern about climate change and greenhouse gas emissions has resulted in a steady shift in the transportation sector from conventional fossil fuel-based combustion vehicles to electric vehicles (EVs). In the last decade only, the growth of EVs on the road has increased exponentially. So, the desired energy availability and charging infrastructure in multi-energy systems must be in place to support this mass adoption. However, the major drawback of EVs is their range anxiety. In the case of EV charging from a low-voltage network, the charging time is high, and the operational capabilities are poor because of the uneven load dynamics of EV charging. Thus, ultra-fast charging (UFC) solves this problem and makes EVs a worthwhile investment for both manufacturers and customers. A UFC infrastructure replicates the refuelling network of a conventional-based combustion vehicle by reducing the charging time to the range of 5 to 10 min. This paper presents a technological review of an ultra-fast charging station (UFCS), including a comprehensive analysis of two power electronic conversion stages: AC/DC and DC/DC. The converters utilized for UFC are compared on the basis of current trends, technical advancements, control, and converter topology. The comprehensive survey of each aspect of the UFCS is done. In addition, this paper presents topologies of the solid-state transformer (SST) based on UFC. The analysis of grid stability and the battery considerations of EV for UFC along with the model reduction techniques in multi-energy systems are discussed.