Questions tagged [aerospace-materials]

Asp materials are materials, frequently metal alloys, that have either been developed for, or have come to prominence through, their use for aerospace purposes.

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1 answer
477 views

How do fighter jets measure how high they are?

I know most of the commercial planes use altimeter to find how high they are. I was just curious in finding out what fighter jets use to to find their height and what are the other technologies that ...
4 votes
1 answer
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Are turbine and compressor blades and vanes cast or forged?

I was wondering how blades and vanes are typically made in commercial jet engines. Would you typically use investment casting to make compressor blades or just in the turbine section to accommodate ...
1 vote
1 answer
454 views

What materials are used in a Rolls-Royce RB211-524 Engine?

I am trying to know what materials (Specifically metals) are used in making a Rolls-Royce RB211-524 Engine. I already found what is used in engines in general, but is it the same for all? And if so, ...
2 votes
0 answers
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How do composite aero structures compare against metallic structures in crash resistance?

is there any information available comparing the difference in crash resistance between composite mainly carbon or fiberglass polymers etc vs conventional metallic mainly aluminum aircraft structures.
2 votes
1 answer
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How is a composite fuselage repaired when structurally damaged?

In case of FOD, a fuselage puncture for example, what is the repair process? Considering time, complexity and cost, how is compared if it was an aluminium fuselage?
18 votes
3 answers
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Why would a jet engine that runs at temps excess of 2000°C burn when it crashes?

Airline engines are designed to work at very high temperatures. Yet, when a plane crashes they're burnt (see below). Is it something in their design? (bostonherald.com)
4 votes
1 answer
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What material is used to make the interior sidewalls panels, ceiling as well as luggage bins in a commercial aircraft?

What material is use to make the interior sidewalls panels, ceiling as well as luggage bins? All these elements seems to be made of similar material. What is the weight these cabin interior elements ...
7 votes
4 answers
7k views

Why has aluminium, rather than steel, prevailed in airliner construction?

As any cyclist knows, steel has many advantages over aluminium: it's stronger (for the same size) it can handle greater forces without needing to be stiffer it has better fatigue characteristics it's ...
5 votes
1 answer
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What is the material and font used on the panels of most cockpits?

I am working on a project for one of my aerospace engineering classes and was curious to see if anyone knew what type of material is used to make the panels of a cockpit (preferably a 737) as well as ...
1 vote
2 answers
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Can balloons be stacked in a climable daisy chain to the edge of space? [closed]

How high can a balloon/s be and still be tethered to the ground? The most common problem was finding the calmest place on Earth. The longest balloon chain is 20 km Pictures below are basic ...
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2 answers
256 views

aircraft display Processors

what kind of Processors and GPU are used for Aircraft display ? Is it possible to use single processor to run all three displays (Primary flight display, Navigation display and EICAS)?
3 votes
2 answers
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Which aluminium alloy is used in the Boeing 747's fuselage?

Which aluminium alloy is used in the Boeing 747's fuselage?
2 votes
2 answers
300 views

Is there a flexible "cloth-like" material that can be used as "skin" for a non-conventional wing?

I am in the very early stages of playing with the idea of an ornithopter derived aircraft. The intention is to be able to scale the resulting aircraft, to passenger (or useful payload) carrying ...
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Could a airship be built using vacuum as the lighter-than-air “material”? [duplicate]

Could an airship be built that uses instead of a very light gas a vacuum to keep it floating? Or would the materials needed to keep its volume even without the pressure from the inside always be ...
2 votes
2 answers
673 views

Is it possible to build a honeycombed vacuum balloon? [closed]

Is it possible to build a vacuum balloon with a near perfect void that can lift heavy objects and doesn't collapse and buckle under the atmosphere? I expect perhaps a honeycombed or lorimerlite ...
6 votes
1 answer
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What is the average weight difference between composite and metal airliners?

Is there any rule of thumb for weight savings using composite materials. For example, is there an early model large airliner like the B747 or even B737 that later was modified with composite wings or ...
5 votes
1 answer
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How did the windshield technology evolve?

I would really appreciate it if someone could please explain the differences and similarities between the cockpit windows of a Boeing 747-400 and Douglas DC-3. I am just trying to figure out how the ...
12 votes
2 answers
6k views

When airplanes first got windows, what material was used?

When airplanes were first introduced they were open cockpit - but soon enclosed cockpits were developed. What were the first materials in use for airplane windows? I don't believe plexiglass existed ...
3 votes
1 answer
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What type of hydraulic oil is used in the aviation industry?

Among the three different types of hydraulic fluid types (mineral based/petroleum based, synthetic esters, naturally occurring vegetable oils) which one is used in the aviation industry and why?
4 votes
1 answer
569 views

How does the rotor blade material affect aircraft performance?

Helicopter rotor blades in newer helicopter designs are made from composite materials. This results in improved performance. Is this simply because they are lighter or is there another reason behind ...
10 votes
1 answer
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What components of the Boeing 787 are made out of titanium?

Inspired by the question, Why is the 787 tail cone made out of titanium?, I want to know what other parts of a Boeing 787 are made out of titanium. We now know, the APU exhaust cone is made out of ...
41 votes
1 answer
10k views

Why is the 787 tail cone made out of titanium?

In this question there is a drawing of a 787 that shows that the tail cone is made of titanium. Why is such a heavy-duty material like titanium required for the tail cone? I do not see how there ...
4 votes
1 answer
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What are the wings and fuselage of an airliner made of?

Which materials are used to make the wings and the fuselage of an airliner, for example the Boeing 767 or the Airbus A320?
4 votes
1 answer
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Which are the main aluminium alloys used in airliner construction?

The proportion of composites used in airliner construction has increased in the last decades, with the B787 and the A350 being the first ones with composites making up the majority of wing and ...
4 votes
0 answers
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What material is used on the wing surface of this airplane?

This is one of the Redbull's 2015 Flugtag contestants; I was wondering what material is used on the wing surface of this airplane? video here.
1 vote
1 answer
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What are Water Vapour Resistant (WVR) engine bags made from?

What specific material are Water Vapour Resistant (WVR) engine bags made from?
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2 answers
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What materials are suitable for making a mini gas turbine engine?

What materials are suitable for a mini/model gas turbine engine, specifically the fan, compressor, combustion chamber and turbine?
3 votes
1 answer
644 views

What type of variation in temperature does the wing undergo?

Generally what is temperature variation does the wing of the commercial aircraft like A380 undergo , flying at mach speed of 0.8 and how does it affect the aircraft other than icing , what type of ...
2 votes
2 answers
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What is the material composition of aircraft compressor blades?

I read up that aircraft compressor blades are generally made out of titanium. I was curious as to why is titanium the choice of material used for aircraft compressor blades? What alloys are involved ...
5 votes
1 answer
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Are flame holders made of a special material other than that used in combustion chamber?

Are the flame holders made of materials which have higher friction coefficients than the combustion chamber in order to create turbulence?
2 votes
1 answer
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Are artificial magnetic fields used or proposed to be used to shield high altitude pilots and astronauts from charged, high energy radiation?

If not for the earth's magnetic field our atmosphere would be bombarded by high energy plasma (ionized gas) from the sun and other space sources. At very high altitudes and orbital altitudes this ...
1 vote
1 answer
301 views

Could low pressure compressor blades be made of aluminum?

With the compressor blades on a gas turbine, could the low pressure blades be made of aluminum, or would it be catastrophic? Edit: Like the 6061 alloy.
11 votes
3 answers
2k views

Can stainless steel replace titanium for Mach 3+ speeds?

In the documentary Wings of Russia: MiG-25 and MiG-31, they mentioned both aircraft had to use special stainless steel alloys and arc welding to withstand the Mach 2.83 - 3.2 speeds. I couldn't help ...
3 votes
1 answer
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What material are High Pressure Compressors made of? [duplicate]

What material are GE engine High Pressure Compressor (spools) made of ? i.e. aluminum, titanium ?
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Is tungsten a good metal for jet engines, besides the weight penalty?

Right now, the hottest part of jet engines are made from a steel-nickel alloy. Is tungsten a better choice? Pure tungsten has the highest melting point and highest tensile strength of any other pure ...
3 votes
2 answers
3k views

What materials are used to make up a combustion chamber? [duplicate]

What type of materials are used to make up the different sections such as the linings of the combustion chambers in a gas turbine engine. Do these type of materials vary for the different types of gas ...
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1 answer
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Can the phrases "carbon fibre reinforced polymer composites" (CFRP) and "carbon fibre-epoxy composites" be used interchangeably? [closed]

Does the "polymer" in CFRP imply the use of an epoxy resin?
3 votes
1 answer
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How can I design and build an aeroplane from scratch? [closed]

Let's say I want to build an aeroplane completely from scratch (not downloading some blueprints on the internet, I mean really designing it myself). The goal is to create a flyable aeroplane from ...
3 votes
0 answers
966 views

Maximum/Lowest achievable expansion ratio (generally) in a turbine? [closed]

Let's think about a turboprop with a single shaft. The turbine moves the compressor and the propeller. My question: what is the "limit" to the expansion ratio achieved by the turbine? If we call $5$ ...
19 votes
4 answers
28k views

How are rocket engine nozzles able to survive very high temperatures without melting?

The temperature of the gaseous products exiting from the nozzle is higher than the melting point of the nozzle material. So how do the nozzles survive without melting despite exposure to such ...
5 votes
2 answers
2k views

What does "composite panels on a frame" mean?

Reading about composite materials in the 787 on Wikipedia, I came across this: Carbon fiber, unlike metal, does not visibly show cracks and fatigue, prompting concerns about the safety risks of ...
2 votes
1 answer
951 views

Can one make an electric-sailplane from transparent carbon fiber?

Is it technically feasible to make a sailplane from transparent carbon fiber? I am looking for an answer based on the specifications' comparison of the 2 different fibers. And can it be made self-...

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