Structural batteries (SBs) are a growing research subject worldwide. The idea is to provide massless energy by using a multifunctional material. This technology can provide a new pathway in electrification and offer different design opportunities and significant weight savings in vehicle applications. The type of SB discussed here is a multifunctional material that can carry mechanical loads and simultaneously provide an energy storage function. It is a composite material that utilizes carbon fibers (CFs) as electrodes and structural reinforcement which are embedded in a multifunctional polymer matrix (i.e., structural battery electrolyte). A feasible composite manufacturing method still needs to be developed to realize a full-cell SB. UV initiated polymerization induced phase separation (PIPS) has previously been used to make bicontinuous structural battery electrolytes (SBE) with good ionic conductivity and mechanical performance. However, UV-curing cannot be used for fabrication of a full cell SB since a full-cell is made of multiple layers of nontransparent CFs. The present paper investigates thermally initiated PIPS to prepare a bicontinuous SBE and an SB half-cell. In addition, the effect of curing temperature was examined with respect to curing performance, morphology, ionic conductivity, and mechanical and electrochemical performance. The study revealed that thermally initiated PIPS provides a robust and scalable process route to fabricate SBs. The results of this study are an important milestone in the development of SB technology as they allow for the SB fabrication for an actual application. However, other challenges still remain to be solved before this technology can be introduced into an application.

Reduced mass for improvements in system performance has become a priority for a wide range of applications that requires electrical energy and includes load-bearing components. Use of lightweight materials has been identified as key for successful electrification of future transport solutions. Structure, energy storage and energy distribution are usually subsystems with the highest mass contributions but energy storage and energy distribution devices are structurally parasitic. One creative path forward is to develop composite materials that perform several functions at the same time – multifunctional materials. Combining functions in a single material entity will enable substantial weight savings on the systems level.

One such concept is a structural battery, a material that simultaneously carry load and stores energy like a battery. Structural batteries employ carbon fibres as structural reinforcement and negative electrode and can also be used as current collectors to save additional weight.

A number of new physical phenomena when using carbon fibres as battery electrodes have been found which allows for further multi-functionality. These are all based on the fact that carbon fibres intercalated lithium ions as an electrode material. The ion intercalation creates a reversible longitudinal expansion of the carbon fibres which could be used for actuation and morphing. A piezo electrochemical effect couples the electrical potential of the fibre to the strain acting on it, which can be used for sensing purposes. By combining the expansion and the piezo electrochemical effect one can convert mechanical energy to electrochemical energy, providing an energy harvesting function. The long-term vision of this work is to create a composite material that carries load, stores electrical energy, senses its own state, morphs and harvests energy.

Structural batteries are materials that can carry mechanical load while storing electrical energy. This is achieved by combining the properties of carbon fiber composites and lithium ion batteries. There are many design parameters for a structural battery and in order to understand their impact and importance, this paper presents a model for multifunctional performance. The mechanical behavior and electrical energy storage of the structural battery are matched to the mechanical behavior of a conventional carbon fiber composite, and the electrical energy storage of a standard lithium ion battery. The latter are both monofunctional and have known performance and mass. In order to calculate the benefit of using structural batteries, the mass of the structural battery is compared to that of the two monofunctional systems. There is often an inverse relationship between the mechanical and electrochemical properties of multifunctional materials, in order to understand these relationships a sensitivity analysis is performed on variables for the structural battery. This gives new insight into the complex multifunctional design of structural batteries.

The results show that it is possible to save mass compared to monofunctional systems but that it depends strongly on the structure it is compared with. With improvements to the design of the structural battery it would be possible to achieve mass saving compared to state-of-the-art composite laminates and lithium ion batteries.

A multifunctional structural battery consisting of carbon fibers, lithium-electrode coatings and a structural battery electrolyte is investigated with an analytical bottom-up model. This model has a multiphysics approach, calculating both mechanical properties and electrical energy storage. The intention of the model is twofold; first, calculating the potential mass saving with using a structural battery instead of the combination of a monofunctional carbon fiber composite and a monofunctional lithium ion battery. Second, the model is used to investigate the behavior of the mass saving due to changing variables of the structural battery. This variable sensitivity analysis is made in order to understand the behavior of the structural battery and its sensitivity to the different construction variables. The results show that the structural battery can save up to 26% of mass compared to the monofunctional parts.

Next, the model of the structural battery is further utilized in a life cycle assessment, where the manufacturing, usage and recycling of the structural battery is investigated. The life cycle assessment examines the structural battery as the roof of an electric vehicle. This analysis is compared to the same assessment for a steel roof and standard lithium ion batteries, which shows that manufacturing the carbon fibers and structural battery with clean energy is most important for decreasing the emissions from manufacturing.

A structural lithium ion battery is a material that can carry load and simultaneously be used to store electrical energy. We describe a path to manufacture structural positive electrodes via electrophoretic deposition (EPD) of LiFePO₄ (LFP), carbon black and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) onto carbon fibers. The carbon fibers act as load-bearers as well as current collectors. The quality of the coating was studied using scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The active electrode material (LFP particles), conductive additive (carbon black) and binder (PVDF) were found to be well dispersed on the surface of the carbon fibers. Electrochemical characterization revealed a specific capacity of around 60–110 mAh g⁻¹ with good rate performance and high coulombic efficiency. The cell was stable during cycling, with a capacity retention of around 0.5 after 1000 cycles, which indicates that the coating remained well adhered to the fibers. To investigate the adhesion of the coating, the carbon fibers were made into composite laminae in epoxy resin, and then tested using 3-point bending and double cantilever beam (DCB) tests. The former showed a small difference between coated and uncoated carbon fibers, suggesting good adhesion. The latter showed a critical strain energy release rate of ∼200–600 J m⁻² for coated carbon fibers and ∼500 J m⁻² for uncoated fibers, which also indicates good adhesion. This study shows that EPD can be used to produce viable structural positive electrodes.

In electric transportation there is an inherent need to store electrical energy while maintaining a low vehicle weight. One way to decrease the weight of the structure is to use composite materials. However, the electrical energy storage in today's systems contributes to a large portion of the total weight of a vehicle. Structural batteries have been suggested as a possible route to reduce this weight. A structural battery is a material that carries mechanical loads and simultaneously stores electrical energy and can be realized using carbon fibers both as a primary load carrying material and as an active battery electrode. However, as yet, no proof of a system-wide improvement by using such structural batteries has been demonstrated. In this study we make a structural battery composite lamina from carbon fibers with a structural battery electrolyte matrix, and we show that this material provides system weight benefits. The results show that it is possible to make weight reductions in electric vehicles by using structural batteries. 

An investigation is conducted into the potential for sodiated PAN-based carbon fibers (CFs) to be used in multifunctional actuation, sensing, and energy harvesting. Axial CF expansion/contraction is measured during sodiation/desodiation using operando strain measurements. The reversible expansion/contraction is found to be 0.1% - which is lower than that of lithiated CFs. The axial sodiation expansion occurs in two well-defined stages, corresponding to the sloping and plateau regions of the galvanostatic cycling curve. The results indicate that the sloping region most likely corresponds to sodium insertion between graphitic sheets, while the plateau region corresponds to sodium insertion in micropores. A voltage-strain coupling is found for the CFs, with a maximum coupling factor of 0.15 +/- 0.01 V/unit strain, which could be used for strain sensing in multifunctional structures. This voltage-strain coupling is too small to be exploited for harvesting mechanical energy. The measured axial expansion is further used to estimate the capacity loss due to solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) formation, as well as capacity loss due to sodium trapped in the CF microstructure. The outcomes of this research suggest that sodiated CFs show some potential for use as actuators and sensors in future multifunctional structures, but that lithiated CFs show more promise.

For the realization of structural batteries, electrolytes where both higher ionic conductivity and stiffness are combined need to be developed. The present study describes the formation of a structural battery electrolyte (SBE) as a two phase system using reaction induced phase separation. A liquid electrolyte phase is combined with a stiff vinyl ester based thermoset matrix to form a SBE. The effect of monomer structure variations on the formed morphology and electrochemical and mechanical performance has been investigated. An ionic conductivity of 1.5 x 10(-4) S cm(-1), with a corresponding storage modulus (E') of 750 MPa, has been obtained under ambient conditions. The SBEs have been combined with carbon fibers to form a composite lamina and evaluated as a battery half-cell. Studies on the lamina revealed that both mechanical load transfer and ion transport are allowed between the carbon fibers and the electrolyte. These results pave the way for the preparation of structural batteries using carbon fibers as electrodes.

For their weight reduction, thin web panels are often used in airspace industry. In this study, a basic fuselage section is represented by a stiffened panel composed by skin, frame, stiffeners and attachments, as conceived by Arakaki and Faria [1]. In this panel design, the structure withholds large loads after the buckling of the web. This study presents a comparison between thick and thin ply composite laminates behavior under shear buckling loads. The two concepts were modeled using the commercial finite element software Abaqus®. Buckling and post-buckling nonlinear behavior for both thick ply and thin ply laminates was analyzed and results were compared.