Issue link: https://resources.mouser.com/i/1442865
| 19 | Replenishing the Grid with a SiC-Based Bi-directional On-Board Charger Wolfspeed, A Cree Company Range anxiety and charger availability have long been the main hurdles to the adoption of electric vehicles. But even as carmakers have demonstrated their batteries can go longer distances and charging stations have proliferated, challenges with EV charging remain as well as opportunities to load balance power grids. The migration to electric vehicles also means looking at how they can better interact with power grids. Not only are they being equipped with lighter, high-power density batteries that can increase their range and potentially be used to support standalone loads, but there's also been a shift toward on-board chargers. These chargers pull power from the grid and send it back to the grid to help replenish it. Wolfspeed's award-winning 6.6kW Bi-Directional On-Board Charger (OBC), enabled by its new 650V SiC MOSFET, has the smarts to play a critical role in the evolution of electric vehicles and the power grids that power them. OBCs' One-Way Challenge Drivers rarely worry about running out of fuel between gas stations, but range concerns for electric vehicles have existed since their inception. Although charging stations are becoming more commonplace and being integrated into new housing developments, how far a car can travel as well as its battery capacity and how long it will hold its charge remain areas for improvement. The number of OBCs is growing and evolving along with the electric vehicles themselves. However, an OBC is not as powerful as a fast charger, which charges a vehicle in an hour or so. An OBC might require six to seven hours for charging. An even more significant drawback of a one-way OBC is that a vehicle sitting idle is losing its charge—that's both energy and money lost. This problem does create a solution, however. It opens the door for electric vehicles to give power back the grid, rather than letting it slowly leak. By having a bi-directional OBC that not only pulls charge from the grid but also replenishes it, an electric vehicle can play a role in load balancing the overall electrical infrastructure of a city. Bi-directionality is also suitable for the vehicle's battery as it needs to be cycled. Rather than always being charged at 80 percent, it should be discharged entirely occasionally, much like a smartphone. Keeping the battery fully powered most of the time means all your components are in a stage of charge all the time, which reduces their life span. This means replacing the battery sooner than later, and like a smartphone, this can be an