Closed-loop air-cooled public electric vehicle charger for harsh environments

This paper focuses on the design of a new electric vehicle public charger with better reliability and lower maintenance needs. The suggested novel concept is based on a closed internal air loop dissipating the heat through a counterflow air-to-air heat exchanger. Numerical results using a Modelica model of the unit and the experimental tests done on a mock-up validate the concept and extend the original output power target up to 120 kW below 45 °C ambient or 60 kW up to 65 °C. However, even with the good integration in the original charger footprint, a 40% increase in the unit depth is required to host the heat exchanger and the external fans instead of the original outlet fans.