Composites have come a long way since their first use in aircraft in the 1970s and 1980s, said Pederson, who gave a keynote speech on this subject at the Supply on the Wings conference held in conjunction with AIRTEC 2011 in Frankfurt. Most parts were manufactured by hand, structures were simple in design, and there was very little use of automated manufacturing processes.
"At that time, composites were used in secondary structure applications, such as flaps, elevators, rudders and engine cowlings: structures that are not flight critical. These composites were mostly sandwich structures made of unmodified epoxies reinforced with aramid, standard modulus carbon, or glass fibers. Early resins did not provide adequate damage tolerance to extend their use to primary commercial aircraft structures, such as wings and fuselage."
Next, the industry focused on developing higher performing materials and bringing more automation into composite manufacturing. The first production applications of composites in commercial aircraft primary structures were the vertical tail plane of the Airbus A310 and A300, and the A320's horizontal tail plane, in the mid-1980s, and the Boeing B777's empennage and floor beams in the mid-1990s. These created a foundation for the adoption of composites in primary structures such as wings and fuselages, where they provide fatigue resistance, corrosion resistance, and lighter weight.
"Today, we are focusing on industrializing composites and their applications, bringing even more automation to the manufacturing process, and developing ways to build additional functionality into materials," said Pederson.
"For example, the primary benefits of composite materials are mechanical performance and weight savings. But due to the ability to tailor these materials, it is quite possible to build other functionality into the material to serve additional purposes, such as lightning strike protection." Such multifunctional materials could potentially eliminate redundant materials, saving weight and cost.
What's next in aerospace composites? Pederson said that much work currently focuses on advances in both materials and manufacturing technologies. This includes carbon fibers, advanced textiles, and new manufacturing processes, as well as nanotechnology, self-healing materials, and materials with built-in structural health monitoring.
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