For new energy vehicle owners, the impact of charging piles on electric vehicles is as significant as that on traditional fuel vehicles. The user experience of charging piles directly affects the car experience.

At present, the new energy vehicle charging piles in the market are mainly divided into DC piles and AC piles. There are significant differences in technical parameters such as current and voltage.

The most obvious difference is power: A pure electric vehicle only needs 1 to 2 hours to be fully discharged through a DC charging pile, while it takes 8 to 10 hours through an AC charging pile.

Why do AC charging piles account for a large proportion despite having low charging efficiency?

Firstly, due to the low technical threshold, the manufacturing cost of AC charging piles is relatively low. Secondly, DC charging piles should be matched with three-phase 380V. The power supply department needs to approve the voltage separately, while AC charging piles only require single-phase 220V. Ordinary household electricity can support the voltage.

Compared with the need to coordinate land and power grid resources for building DC charging piles, the investment and construction restrictions for AC charging piles are much smaller.

Due to their low cost and fast installation speed, in the era of competitive land-grabbing, many enterprises invested in building a large number of low-power AC charging piles to quickly capture the market, resulting in the proliferation of AC charging piles everywhere.

However, for new energy vehicle owners, their love for AC charging piles is far less than its proportion. According to the "White Paper on Charging Behavior of Chinese Electric Vehicle Users" released by the China Electric Vehicle Charging Alliance in early December last year, over 99% of vehicle owners prefer DC fast charging to charge their new energy vehicles, while less than 1% choose AC charging piles.

Since DC charging piles are the general trend, why do I still say that AC charging piles cannot be phased out?

First of all, the current charging piles are mainly built in a centralized manner, and the advantage of DC piles in terms of power is self-evident. In the future, private charging piles will become common, have lower costs, and the installation of AC charging piles will be convenient. Clearly, they are more suitable for private car owners. According to the "Technical Roadmap 2 for Energy-saving and New Energy Vehicles" released by the Society of Automotive Engineers of China, it is estimated that by 2025, the proportion of slow charging output will reach over 70%. The realization of this goal largely depends on the construction of private charging piles. Due to the limitations of community parking Spaces and the capacity of the power grid, the construction of private charging piles is progressing slowly at present. However, with the inclusion of charging piles in new infrastructure construction and the introduction of relevant national policies, the construction of private charging piles may lead to explosive growth. At this point, the price is more favorable and the installation of the exchange piles is more convenient.

Secondly, AC charging piles are conducive to cutting peaks and filling valleys, and have a relatively small impact on the power grid. DC charging piles have high power and fast charging, and have a greater impact on the power grid.

If new energy vehicle owners use high-power DC charging piles, one can imagine the burden on the power grid. On the contrary, if you have one, if you have a bunch, you don't have to spend energy looking for a bunch to charge. Charging during the break after work not only reduces the burden on the power grid but also enables the use of time-of-use electricity prices to lower charging costs. Finally, AC charging piles are more battery-friendly and conducive to extending battery life. Although every battery produced by a regular manufacturer undergoes professional testing to ensure its normal service life, experts still recommend that new energy vehicle owners give priority to using slow charging when conditions permit, especially if they lack confidence in their vehicle's battery management system. After all, battery damage caused by overcharging is irreversible, and the cost of battery replacement is really high. Of course, when building a private charging pile, it is necessary to choose a well-known brand of charging pile to ensure a stable charging current and make the charging process safer.