Radical innovations for all aircraft systems and subsystems are needed for realizing future carbon-neutral aircraft, with hybrid-electric aircraft due to be delivered after 2035, initially in the regional aircraft segment of the industry. Electrical energy storage is one key element here, demanding safe, energy-dense, lightweight technologies. Combining load-bearing with energy storage capabilities to create multifunctional structural batteries is a promising way to minimize the detrimental impact of battery weight on the aircraft. However, despite the various concepts developed in recent years, their viability has been demonstrated mostly at the material or coupon level, leaving many open questions concerning their applicability to structural elements of a relevant size for implementation into the airframe. This review aims at providing an overview of recent approaches for structural batteries, assessing their multifunctional performance, and identifying gaps in technology development toward their introduction for commercial aeronautic applications. The main areas where substantial progress needs to be achieved are materials, for better energy storage capabilities; structural integration and aircraft design, for optimizing the mechanical-electrical performance and lifetime; aeronautically compatible manufacturing techniques; and the testing and monitoring of multifunctional structures. Finally, structural batteries will introduce novel aspects to the certification framework.

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This article reports on two consecutive joint projects titled “Experimental Thermodynamics and Phase Relations of New Electrode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries”, which were performed in the framework of the WenDeLIB 1473 priority program “Materials with new Design for Lithium Ion Batteries”. Hundreds of samples were synthesized using experimental techniques specifically developed to deal with highly reactive lithium and lithium-containing compounds to generate electrochemical, phase diagram and crystal structure data in the Cu–Li, Li–Sn, Li–Sb, Cu–Li–Sn, Cu–Li–Sb and selected oxide systems. The thermochemical and phase diagram data were subsequently used to develop self-consistent thermodynamic descriptions of several binary systems. In the present contribution, the experimental techniques, working procedures, results and their relevance to the development of new electrode materials for lithium ion batteries are discussed and summarized. The collaboration between the three groups has resulted in more than fifteen (15) published articles during the six-year funding period.

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