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Electric Car Motors - AC or DC? And Why?
The first electric car motors weren't built with electric cars in mind, which need a high power output to provide great performance They were usually war surplus motors that were cheap and unfortunately, they didn't provide the kind of performance that people, designers, and manufacturers were looking for...
Most electric cars and electric car motors that are produced today are a purpose built AC motor that uses a DC/AC converter for drive, because the battery pack supplies DC power to the high power controller which then converts it to AC to run the motor
So specialist motor makers appeared, making high power high torque motors... Horsepower for an electric motor is different to the type of horses that a Gasoline engine makes... The power of an electric motor is created from stand still to full revolutions with a torque or turning force that is 3 times higher than gasoline engines... A series DC motor is currently the motor of choice for an EV conversion... Because they produce the highest output for the lightest weight, and because AC motors require an expensive speed controller Also AC motors require a DC to AC converter capable of a very high power output. This all adds up to the Series DC motor winning the conversion war But AC motors are more likely to be used by manufacturers now, because of the performance advantage that you get over DC motors, also you can use the motor to generate charge for the battery via regenerative braking AC and DC motors explained TECHNICAL |
