BC Hydro Level 3 Chargers

My Nissan Leaf Forum

Help Support My Nissan Leaf Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

rparry51

Member
Joined
Dec 16, 2017
Messages
19
Location
Chilliwack BC
I have charged my 2018 Leaf at BC Hydro chargers and seem to get 38 Kw max. That shows as 100 amps at 395 volts.

Does anyone know if these chargers max out at 100 amps? I suspect that a Bolt or Tesla if they have higher battery voltage may get 50 Kw but the Leaf is restricted to max amps before max power is reached.

Does this make sense?

Bob
 
I think you are refering to the 50 kW QCDC stations, similar to this one:

https://www.plugshare.com/location/151716

If so, they are supposed to provide up to 50 kW charging rates.
 
These L3 50kW chargers are a great benefit as previously longer range travel in these parts required at least 4 hrs intervals on L2's.
But with the larger battery packs "soon to be available" this is what is required:
https://electrek.co/2017/10/03/abb-high-power-150-350-kw-electric-car-chargers/
Unfortunately without a TMS system the Leaf will still be subject to software enhanced " throttle gate "
Just have to watch that temp and reduce it by whatever means possible, slow down etc
 
Have a look at James' YouTube video on this topic, which explains why the 2018 LEAF doesn't always get full charging speeds. He even provides details on strategies to maximize the charging rate under various conditions:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgrbT_YxhMs
 
I have followed Lemon Tea and find him quite informative. I have charged my Leaf
at battery temperatures from below 20 C to a max of 35 C. Today in Hope my battery temp
as reported by Leaf Spy was 35 C when I started charging and 37 almost 38 when
I finished. The starting amps were 93 Amps. I finished charging at 95% and the charge rate
was still over 20 Kw and I think it said 59 amps. I have never regardless of battery temp
gotten more than 99 amps from a BC Hydro charge station. I have never rapid charged
below 35% so that may have something to do with it, the battery resistance may drop enough
to get the full 50 Kw.

I have found that driving from Chilliwack to Vancouver numerous times that my battery
temperature does not rise more than 3 to 4 degrees above ambient. So I am not having
troubles with the battery temperature management.

A good friend of mine is at the NRC doing battery research. Talking with him the charge
strategy that Nissan is using he thinks is very good, All batteries have the charge rate back
off as the SOC rises, unavoidable. Charging at temperatures in the 40s is not good at high
rates, so the charging is pulled back. He says if the battery does not remain at temperatures
in the high 40s for long, no damage should occur, Battery temps in the 50s is BAD.

One thing on the TMS system that Chevy and Tesla use that I have not been able to determine
is if the AC system is used in the cooling of the battery. If it is not then the TMS can not cool
below ambient. The water system will help when charging at high rates to keep the temperature
down and even across the pack. BMW does use a refrigerant to cool their battery, so cooling below
ambient is possible for them.

When I worked at Ballard Power Systems on the Fuel Cell Bus we had troubles with temperature
regulation in the Southern US as summer air temperatures above roadways often reached 115 F
or higher. When we needed to keep the FC temp below 60 C this resulted in enormous radiators.
Keeping batteries cool in these climates is a problem for every manufacturer with and without
water cooling. The PEM Fuel Cell industry is looking for higher temperature membranes to allow
higher operating temperatures, I am certain that the battery people are looking at higher operating
temperatures for batteries as a way to reduce weight and improve reliability.

parry
 
Back
Top