Impact Response of a Thermoplastic Battery Housing for Transport Applications

The urgent push to electrify Europe's transportation sector has intensified efforts to develop battery technologies that are not only high-performing but also environmen-tally sustainable. A critical element in battery system design is the structural housing, which must provide effective impact protection to ensure passenger safety and prevent catastrophic failures. Thermoplastic composite housings present notable advantages over traditional metallic and thermoset alternatives, owing to their superior toughness, recyclability, and ease of processing. This study examines the impact response of a battery housing fabricated from an innovative thermoplastic composite material—glass fiber-reinforced ELIUM MC combined with Martinal ATH. The composite’s mechan-ical properties were first evaluated through standardized tests. To assess impact re-sistance, low-velocity drop-weight impact experiments were performed on both flat composite plates and the full-scale housing. These tests were conducted at varying energy levels to induce barely visible impact damage (BVID) and visible impact dam-age (VID). A numerical model of the housing was developed using LS-DYNA explicit software, incorporating experimentally derived material properties. After successful validation against the experimental results, the model was used to simulate a series of impact scenarios, including ground and pole collisions. The simulations showed that high-energy impacts significantly compromise the structural integrity of the housing, yet do not jeopardize the battery pack itself. In contrast, low-energy impacts resulted in only localized damage, preserving the functional integrity of the system. Beyond en-suring structural integrity, this thermoplastic housing addresses critical challenges in electric mobility, namely recyclability and fire safety. These findings underscore the potential of thermoplastic composites in enhancing the crashworthiness, safety, and durability of battery housings, offering a sustainable path for electric transportation.