The demand for piezoelectric systems with improved performance has lead to the development of piezocomposite materials, which consist of an active piezoelectric ceramic phase and a passive polymer phase. Piezoelectric '3-3' composites are candidate materials for low frequency hydrophones due to their low acoustic impedance (low density) and superior hydrostatic performance compared to monolithic piezoelectric ceramic materials. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the optimisation of the performance of these composites by understanding the microstructural parameters that influence behaviour under hydrostatic conditions. This is achieved by examining the hydrostatic response of finite element models with various 3-3 geometry. Parameters investigated are the influence of polymer volume fraction, the mechanical properties of the polymer phase (elastic modulus and Poisson's ratio) and the piezoelectric properties of the active phase.
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