Phoenix Contact 500A Liquid Cooled Charging Cables

500kW in One Cooled Charging Connector

Charging currents of up to 200kW were possible with the Combined Charging System (CCS). Significantly higher currents are necessary to achieve very short charging times. Conventional charging technology results in dangerous overheating or requires larger, more cumbersome cable diameters. Phoenix Contact HPC technology is based on active liquid cooling that allows charging currents of up to 500kW without compromising safety or manageability.

CCS Becomes HPC-Capable

High Power Charging technology is based on the Combined Charging System (CCS), a standard developed by Phoenix Contact in cooperation with the automotive industry. One of the primary challenges faced when developing the fast charging connector was how to design both the cross-section of the charging cable and the size and weight of the charging connector to be as practical as possible. This problem was overcome by developing an intelligent and efficient cooling system, as well as designing a well-thought-out cable.

The connectors are fitted with silver-plated contacts and a contact carrier that, thanks to its excellent thermal conductivity, also acts as a heatsink. As a result of these features, a particularly high level of stability and exceptional cooling performance are achieved simultaneously.

The cooling system ensures that the normative limit temperature ΔTmax is not exceeded.

How Does the Cooling System Work?

According to the VDE-AR-E 2623-5-3 directive and the IEC TS 62196-3-1 standard, charging connectors and cables must not exceed 50K warmer than the ambient air temperature during the charging process (ΔTmax = 50K).

To comply, multiple temperature sensors integrated in the HPC system measure the heat produced directly at the charging connector power contacts and also in the charging cable in real time. A controller evaluates the data acquired and regulates the cooling output. This reliably prevents overheating in compliance with standards while increasing energy efficiency.

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