1 experimental and numerical evaluation of residual mechanical performance of carbon/epoxy laminated coupons after integration of solid battery cells for aeronautical applications

Abstract

The present study deals with a numerical and experimental evaluation of the residual mechanical performance of a quasi-isotropic carbon/epoxy laminated composite plate in which solid battery cells have been integrated. Firstly, the mechanical properties of the multifunctional Reinforced Multilayer Stack (RMS) battery cells have been determined thanks to dedicated multi-instrumented tests, while those of the AS4/8552 composite material have been extracted from the literature and validated by comparisons with tensile tests on plates without battery, considered as a reference case. Then, on the basis of the recommendations obtained from a virtual test campaign using FE simulations, a 16-ply laminated composite plate containing 6 solid battery cells was manufactured with a modified curing cycle that preserves the electrical properties of the batteries while ensuring the mechanical properties of the composite material. Various control methods, such as CT-scan and optical analysis, were used to demonstrate the promising quality of the manufactured composite coupon with embedded cells. Finally, a mechanical tensile test was carried out to experimentally determine the reduction in mechanical properties. The analysis of such a test with non-linear FE simulation has allowed a better understanding of the damage and failure process when solid battery cells are integrated into high performance laminated composite structures designed for the aeronautical industry.