Theme 4: Scale-up, Multidevice Assembly and Demonstration​

To demonstrate the ability to scale up the structural supercapacitors and their operation in an industrial application, we have designed and manufactured a c-section beam representing an aircraft fuselage structural frame component (Figure 1). This c-section beam can store electrical energy to power the opening of the aircraft door in an emergency when the door requires significant force to open. This structural power beam could replace a bulky bank of supercapacitors (4.2 kg) which is normally located on the door. Eight structural supercapacitor cells (Figure 2) have been integrated into the web section of the beam and contribute to the mechanical stiffness. These cells can be quickly charged and discharge to open and close a desktop scale model of an aircraft door using a servo motor located under the hinge.