Processing of aerospace

materials -I

Lecture 1
05 January 2015

Aerospace systems

Aircraft
Helicopters
Missiles
Rockets
Satellite systems

Airframe
Landing gear
Propulsion
coatings

The course deals with structural materials and high

temperature coatings

Outlook for
2013-2022

RW: Re-Work (?)

BGA: Business and
General Aviation

www.icfi.com

Empennage

www.englishclub.com

www.nasa.gov

Well known aircraft

Light Combat Aircraft (ADA-DRDO/ HAL)

Powered by FG E -404
Max speed: 1.8M, Range 850 km

F/A 18 Hornet (McDonell Douglas)

Powered by GE F-404
Max speed: 1.8M, range ?

A-380 by Airbus
B-787 passenger aircraft

Why study materials for aerospace

Structural efficiency = design methodology + materials
capability
Higher structural efficiency results in improved
performance at reduced operating costs.
There is close interaction between materials
selection, manufacturability, design methods and
ultimate product acceptance
Improved performance also needs certain amount of
damage tolerance in the material because of the
need of reliability

Different product forms

Forgings
Castings
Extrusions
Sheets
Plates
Amenability to net shape forming including
welding, deep forming etc

Material selection needs to consider amenability to produce appropriate mill forms or

to net shaping methods. Otherwise, these will create constraints on the design abiliaty.

Performance drivers
Light weight
High strength and stiffness
at service temperature

Durability
Fatigue life
Fatigue crack growth
Corrosion
Stress corrosion

Performance drivers (contd)

Light weighing
Greater payloads
Longer range
Fuel saving
Reduction in density is the
most effective way to
reduce weight of structures
(compared to reducing
weight by property
improvement)

High temperature properties

High temperature capability
of materials allows
increased operating
temperature of the engine,
which gives greater engine
thrust

Improving fuel efficiency by various means

Important aerospace materials

Aluminium alloys
Magnesium alloys
Fibre reinforced composites (CFRP / GFRP)
Beryllium alloys
Titanium alloys
High strength steels
Nickel base superalloys
Coatings such as thermal barrier coatings
.... Many other specialised materials such as
ceramics

Trends in airframe materials

Paulo Antnio Gouveia Vieira, Ph D Dissertation, Universidade da Beira

Interior, Portugal, 2013

Component performance
Understanding relations between processing
(manufacture), (micro) structure and
properties is key to improving performance

Aluminium alloys
Main airframe material (density = 2.7 g/cc,
E=71 GPa)
Main competitor are fibre reinforced
composites due to light weight and high
stiffness in certain directions
High strength aluminium alloys are still
important in all aerospace systems
Pre-1920s: wood was the predominant airframe material
1920s onwards: aluminium replaced wood

Aluminium alloys for airframe

Most airframe is made of 2xxx and 7xxx series
aluminium alloys
2xxx alloys are used in damage tolerant
applications such as lower wing skin and
fuselage of commercial aircraft
7xxx alloys are used in upper wing skin
2xxx alloys have higher temperature capability
than 7xxx alloys (250 F)

Aluminium alloys
Reducing impurities such as Fe and Si increases
fracture toughness and resistance to fatigue crack
initiation and reduce fatigue crack growth rate
Newer versions of 2xxx and xxx alloys which use
above principles are:
2524-T3
7150-T77
7055-T77
all have been used on B-777

Aluminium alloys
2024-T3 is the most widely used aluminium
alloy for fuselage
It has moderate yield strength, high fatigue
crack growth resistance and high fracture
toughness
Newer 2524-T3 gives 15-20% improvement in
KIC and 2 times fatigue crack growth
resistance than 2024-T3

Aluminium alloys

7xxx alloys are stronger than 2xxx alloys

They are used in sheet, plate, extrusions and forgings
7075-T6 was the earliest alloy used in airframe
However, it suffered from high stress corrosion cracking
Therefore, newer alloys such as 7055-T7651 came
which had increased thickness section toughness.
Tightening composition control, eliminating impurities
and dev of improved ageing cycle led to reduction in
stress corrosion cracking
These newer treatments gave improved KISCC without
significant drop in strength

Magnesium and beryllium

Advantage
Very low density (Mg=1.8 g/cc, Be=1.85 g/cc)
Drawbacks
Magnesium has poor corrosion resistance
Beryllium needs to be processed by powder
metallurgy. Powders and dust of Be are toxic.
Be vapour is also toxic. Needs controlled
environment to process, and is therefore
expensive.

Titanium
Lighter than steels and nickel base superalloys.
(Ti=4.5 g/cc)
Competes with steel in airframes, which is room
temperature application, and with nickel base
superalloys in low temperature portions of gas
turbines
Titanium has the following advantages
High fatigue resistance (important in airframes)
High temperature capability
High resistance to corrosion

High strength steels

Steels make up to 15% structural weight of
airframe (Fe density=7.85 g/cc)
Used in landing gear
Extremely high strength and stiffness can be
achieved with alloying and heat treatment
In landing gear, volume is to be minimised
since the landing gear gets retracted and
contained within the overall aircraft body

Ni base Superalloys
Used in gas turbine engines (density=8.9 g/cc)
Applications at temperatures nearly 80% of
incipient temperature (temperature at which
certain low melting phases start to melt)
Superalloys have very good strength, good
fatigue and creep resistance and good
corrosion resistance at high temperatures

Composite materials
Types
Polymer matrix composites (PMC)
Metal matrix composites (MMC)
Ceramic matrix composites (CMC)
Characteristics of PMCs
Light weight
Optimise strength and stiffness through lay up design
Improved fatigue life
Corrosion resistance
(with good design practice) reduced assembly cost due to fewer detail
parts and fasteners
Generally strength/density and stiffness/density higher than for metals

Composite materials (contd)

1960s to 1990s: introduction of FRPs.
Earliest CFRP use was on empennage of F-14
and F-15 fighter aircraft
Bf-epoxy horizontal stabilisers, rudders,
vertical fins on F-15
Cf-CE speed brakes on F-15.

Composites (Contd)
Applications were in wing (skin and substructure),
forward fuselage, horizontal stabilisers
Modern aircraft has composites accounting for 27%
weight of airframe
F-15: by 1970s composites were 2% airframe weight
F/A 18 A/B: by mid 1970s 10% of airframe
AV-8B: by early 1980s 27% of airframe
F/A 18 E/F: by mid 1990s 22% of airframe
B-787: 50% airframe is composite

Western turbine engines

Trent 1000 turbo fan engine by Rolls

Royce. Powers Boeing 787

GEnx-1B-d42657B turbo fan engine.

Powers 747-8, Boeing 787

Snecma M88 turbo fan

engine used on the
Dassault Rafale.

Russian Engines

Saturn AL-31FP turbo fan engine for Su-35

MKI (used by IAF) and Su-35 MKM/ Y2000/
123 kN/ 133 kN), NPO Saturn, Russia

450px-Ivchenko_AI- 20M_
Szolnok_2010_1. Powers
transport aircraft AN32 with IAF.

Slide courtesy N Das, DMRL

1800oC

EXHAUST

800oC

TURBINE

2200oC

COMBUSTOR

620oC

COMPRESSOR

245oC

FAN

Gas Temperature

Service temperatures and materials

Ti

Titanium alloys
Fan and Compressor

Nickel base superalloys

Combustor and Turbine

4 bar

4 bar

29 bar

30 bar

5.5 bar

Pressure

Ni

CMCs
Nozzle

Turbine engines
The Brayton Cycle

2250 C

Efficiency is the ratio of propulsive power to

fuel power.
Since Brayton cycle is assumed as isentropic,
Tatm/Tcompressor exit= Texhaust/Tturbine entry
B=1-(Texhaust/Tturbine entry)

Higher the turbine entry

temperature, higher is the engine
efficiency and thrust

Ni base superalloy castings for turbine

sections
DMRL

Ceramic cores
(leachable)

These parts can operate at temperatures as high as 1075 C. Due to

insulating coating and internal cooling, the turbine entry temperature
can be close to (or even above) the melting point of the Ni base super
alloy used.

Evolution of the high-temperature capability of the superalloys

Roger E Reed, The Superalloys Fundamentals and

Applications, Cambridge University Press, 2006

WORLD SCENARIO IN FIGHTER AIRCRAFTS ENGINES

S.
Aircraft
No.

Rafale

Euro
fighter

F-22

Su-30
MKI

SU-35

LCA

LCA

LCA

LCA

Engine
&
its layout
M-88-3
3+6+1+1
EJ-200
3+5+1+1
F-119
3+6+1+1
AL-31 FP
4+9+1+1
117-F
4+9+1+1
F-404
3+7+1+1
F404IN20
3+7+1+1
F414
3+7+1+1
F414INS6

Thrust
Weight (kN)
(Kg)
Dry /
A.B.

TET,
(C)

HPT
material
AM-1
+TBC

1000

60 / 90

1527

1046

60 / 90

1647

1600
1530

105 /
157
79.4 /
123.9

1577
1427

30%
less

CMSX4
+TBC
PW1484
+TBC

Metal capability
for 100hr
rupture life at
140MPa
1076C
1100C
1090C

ZS-32SC

1080C

ZS-32SC
+TBC

1080C

1016

50 / 79

1477

Rene-4

1066C

1020

54 / 85

1577

Rene-5

1090C

1173

64 / 95

1627

1173

64 / 95

1677

Rene-5
+TBC
Rene-6
+TBC

Remarks
M-88-3 at certification.
MC544 alloy +TBC in
latest French fighter
MX-4 alloy +TBC in
latest Euro-fighter
PW1497 +TBC in
F-135 engine for JSF
IAF Sukhoi Fighters
from Russia
Engine cleared flying
test bed at NPO Saturn
GE engine in currently
flying LCA
LSP proposal :
EJ-200 / F404IN20

1090C

GE proposal to IAF

1118C

GE proposal to INS

Slide courtesy N Das, DMRL

Thermal barrier coating (TBC) system

Purpose: bond coat is given to reduce oxidation in

service and also to facilitate good bonding between Ni
base superalloy and yttria-stabilised-zirconia TBC

Thermal barrier coatings (TBC)

Allows higher turbine entry temperatures

than the superalloy is capable to
withstand

Course content

Overview of the course: scope and importance (1) [1]

Selection of materials for air frames (2) [3]
Selection of materials for aeroengines (2) [5]
Theory of air induction melting, degassing and
inoculation, and application to aluminium alloys
(2)[7]
General solidification microstructures, defects and
control (2)[9]
Theory of semi continuous casting, and application to
aluminium alloys (1) [10]

Course content (contd)

Theory of high temperature deformation and
cold working (3) [13]
Forging, rolling and extrusion of aluminium
alloys (2) [15]
Phase transformations in aluminium alloys and
heat treatment practices (2) [17]
Theory of vacuum induction melting and ingot
casting, and application to nickel base
superalloys (2)[19]
Forging and rolling of wrought nickel base
superalloys (2) [21]

Course content
Theory of directional solidification and grain structure
control (2) [23]
Investment casting nickel base superalloys with
equiaxed and columnar grains (2) [25]
Single crystal investment casting of nickel base
superalloys (2)[27]
Phase transformations in nickel base superalloys and
heat treatment practices (2) [29]
Surface engineering (bond coating, thermal barrier
coating with air plasma spray and electron beam
physical vapour deposition) (2) [31]

Course content
Introduction to FRP composites (2) [33]
Processing of FRP composites (2) [35]
Non Destructive Examination in metallic and
composite materials (NDE) (2) [37]
Course summary (1) [38]

Text book

Lecture 2 preview
Design criteria for airframe components
Ashby maps for selection of material for room
temperature structural applications
Wrought aluminium alloys, designations
including heat treatment designations
Method of calculation of weight saving by
material replacement (ideal weight saving,
realistic weight savings)