Versinetic’s periodic table explains EV sector tech terms

So if you’ve been befuddled by granny chargers, Formula E, PHEV or BEV, or wondered if you should get your RA checked out, then this should help.

Terms in the EV periodic table include:

CHAdeMO: Large, round four-pin charging plug for rapid charging points only. Generally used with EV marques such as Mitsubishi and Nissan. It can also be used for Vehicle to Grid (V2G); however, it needs two separate sockets and is less powerful than CCS. 

Formula E: Similar to Formula One, Formula E is an international racing championship featuring electric cars rather than ones powered by fossil fuels.

Granny chargers: A car charger that can be plugged into a mains socket in a house. They’re called granny chargers because the most often time they’re used is when visiting a family member who lets you charge up your car for your return journey. Often they only produce 2kW of power, so charging is very slow.

OCPI: Open Charge Point Interface Protocol. This is an open protocol supporting connections between charging stations and a central management system, allowing any EV user to charge at any charging point without having to subscribe to every charging point operator’s payment scheme.

Range Anxiety: the fear that your car will run out of battery before reaching your destination. This is being tackled somewhat by the increase in EV range, which can now be in excess of 200 miles in some vehicles, and by the rolling out of EV charging infrastructure. In most instances, this is not actually a problem anymore, however this concern is currently very widespread.

V2G: Vehicle-to-Grid, an up-and-coming technology to off-set energy consumption of the grid at peak times using the batteries of EVs. Currently, the use of a V2G charger with most EVs will void the battery warranty, and the use of electric vehicles is not widespread enough to have a noticeable impact. However, in the next decade this technology is expected to reduce the need for grid upgrades and provide an alternative revenue source for EV drivers, making charging even cheaper.

ZEF: Zero Emissions Vehicle, namely a vehicle that never emits exhaust gas from the onboard source of power.

BEV: Battery Electric Vehicle – a 100% pure electric car.  It is solely powered by a rechargeable battery, which stores chemical energy.  Demand for BEVs is accelerating, with drivers opting for BEVs such as the Renault Zoe, Nissan Leaf or Tesla Model 3.

PHEV: Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle, which deploys both a battery and a petrol or diesel internal combustion engine (or ICE). PHEVs are often regarded as a popular choice for those not ready to make the leap to driving a full electric vehicle. PHEVs have larger batteries than BEVs and offer better fuel economy than ICE cars. Popular models include the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV and the Hyundai Ioniq Plug-In.

Try it the interactive periodic table and simply click on each cell to reveal the meaning of the 'symbol' or tech term.