Characterization of CDL capacitor power sources for electrical actuation applications

Power sources for electrical actuation systems need to be made as compact as possible for many potential applications. Size and weight constraints require that the energy and power densities of the source be as large as possible. While, in general, it is not possible to optimize both these parameters simultaneously, chemical double-layer (CDL) capacitor technology offers an excellent combination of the desirable energy and power density characteristics required in a source for these applications. In this paper, the authors describe the design, construction and testing of a 270-V, 1-F chemical double layer capacitor bank made using a composite electrode structure and sized for a particular electromechanical actuator application