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This Defense Intelligence Reference Document was prepared by the Defense Intelligence Agency's Defense Warning Office and dated 1 November 2010. It is one of a series of advanced technology reports produced under the Advanced Aerospace Weapons System Applications Program. The report reviews how ultracapacitors work, how they compare with batteries, their history and materials, and their commercial, military and aerospace uses. It concludes that new materials and cell designs will raise energy density and that the U.S. government must understand the devices' spectral signatures.
From the source:Release of 2026-09-18 Incident: 11/1/10, Las Vegas, Nevada. Released with redactions. This document is a Defense Intelligence Reference Document (DIRD), a technical reference format used by the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) to capture baseline knowledge on a specific topic for later analytic use. DIRDs are best understood as reference and synthesis products rather than as original research. It is one of 38 DIRDs produced under the Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications Program (AAWSAP) between 2009 and 2011. Because AAWSAP’s scope permitted a broad range of supporting topics, not every DIRD in the series directly concerns aerospace systems or future threat assessment. The following summary reflects the DIRD’s scope and framing at the time of writing and should not be read as implying current validation of the concepts discussed. This DIRD surveys ultracapacitors as high-power energy-storage devices and argues that their main value lies in extremely rapid charge and discharge, very long cycle life, and usefulness in systems that need short bursts of power rather than sustained energy delivery. The report explains how ultracapacitors differ from batteries, reviews the materials and cell designs that determine their performance, and emphasizes that they are especially useful for power stabilization, backup power, load leveling, regenerative braking, and other applications where fast energy transfer matters more than total stored energy. It also notes their drawbacks, including lower energy density, self-discharge, and voltage-management requirements that limit their usefulness as stand-alone replacements for batteries in many applications. The document presents ultracapacitors as a maturing and increasingly important technology whose most credible aerospace and military uses lie in pulsed-power, missile and munitions systems, electric propulsion support, and other hybrid power architectures rather than in long-duration primary energy storage.
UNCLASSIFIED1/FOR 8ffl@IAL tt.!! 8flt I AEROSPACE Ultracapacitors are suitable for applications requ iring large bursts of power for relatively short periods of time, with the ability to be recharged rapidly. Ultracapacitors are find ing ubiquitous use in electronics and transportation, and there are a number of applications in aerospace rang ing from backup power to high pulse-power delivery. The electronics systems in military vehicles requi re failsafe operation; ultracaps can be designed to provide a continuous power source in the event of a power interruption. Fire-control systems are another example where continuous power is requ ired, including higher power capability. Ai rbags require a backup power source to ensu re they are deployed as requ ired with or without a powered system. Small portable communications systems have ultracaps for backup power and to reta in memory. Memory retention is critical in many systems; for example, the bridge power used during a transfer from ground to onboard power in aircraft systems can be supplied by an ultracap. Ultracaps are excellent for stabilizing the power that is either delivered or received. For example, communication systems may requ ire additional power during transmission, which can be offset by using an ultracap to supplement the system. Bus voltages may need peak current stab ilization. The high-power capabilities of ultracaps make them advantageous for severa l systems. The fast discharge is ideal for delivering the significantly higher power required for starting cold engines. Active suspension systems in vehicles require bursts of power that are delivered in response to the terra in; an ultracap can store the necessary power, del iver as necessary, and recharge quickly. GPS -guided missiles and projectiles may use ultracapacitors to provide the power required for commun ication and navigation. High-power discharge for naval systems has been identified as an area where ultracaps are especially useful, often used in hybrid systems in tandem with high-energy batteries. Extremely high power delivery makes ultracapacitors a potential veh icle for del ivering the power required for directed-energy weapons. As pseudocapacitive systems reach higher energy densities, along with improvements to the materials and cell composition, ultracapacitors will have capabilities of delivering large amounts of power in a very short time, conta ined within an increasingly smaller footprint. Signatures and Vulnerabilities As mentioned above, ultracapacitors could be important in the development of ultrawideband energy weapons. Previously, this market has been dominated by bulk acoustic semiconductor switch (BASS) devices, but by stringing several capacitors together in parallel, a more formidable discharge can be created. Because ultracapacitors have very high discharge rates, they will emit a distinctive broadband RF signature when discharged. A modest wideband receiver may be ab le to detect this discharge; its proxim ity wi ll depend upon the construction of the target device. Furthermore, the architecture of such a device may yield a unique signature that, with the proper equipment, can be identified and certa inly warrants further study. When employed in a particular electronic device, this signature may be altered by its immediate envi ronment, and th is may further give an indication of both the type of use and device employed. When searching for ultracaps in the field that are not in use, the large electrostatic potentials may provide a clue. UNCLASSIFIEO/fFOA OFFl€il.t.k YSE O,.Llf 15
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Official release, from the pursue collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 34 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.