1. The History of Aircraft Materials
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2. The History of Aircraft Materials
 Questions
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to answer in this module…
What is the brief history of the materials used to
construct aircraft?
Why were these materials adopted?
Why did some materials replace others?
What is the future for materials in aircraft?

3. 1843 - Rubber
 Charles
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Goodyear – Vulcanization
Tires
Seals and gaskets

4. 1903 - First flight - Wright Brothers
Aluminum engine block
Spruce & steel wire structure
Fabric skin
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5. 1903 - Wright Brothers
 Why
wood and wire structure?
 Why fabric skin?
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6. 1903 – Aluminum Engine Block
Most internal combustion engines of the time
were of cast iron construction
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7. 1907 – Plastic
Leo Hendrik Baekeland – refines plastic
production to create bakelite
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8. 1915 – All Metal Airplane
Hugo Junkers
Steel tubing
Sheet iron skin
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9. 1916 - Stressed Skin Construction
LFG Roland C.II
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10. Stressed-Skin Construction
 Why
stressed-skin?
Skeleton-like space frame
construction used for
non-stressed skin aircraft.
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11. 1926 - Semi-Monocoque Construction
Ford Tri-motor
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12. Semi-Monocoque Construction
Cutaway view
semi-monocoque
construction
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13. 1930’s – Increased Aluminum Use
Duralumin and Alclad
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14. 1931 - Stainless Steel Construction
Budd BB-1 Pioneer
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15. Steel/ Stainless Steel vs. Aluminum
So why not build all aircraft out of stainless steel?
Corrosion resistance
Weight
Cost
Buckling failure
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16. 1936 - Plastics Use Expands
Plexiglas
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17. 1942 - Composites- Fiberglass
Cockpit components for war effort
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18. 1940’s – 1950’s Superalloys
Before World War II iron based alloys were developed for high
temperture work.
The war increased demand of performance materials for
turbochargers and jets.
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19. 1950-1963 - Titanium
The A-12 precursor to the SR-71
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20. 1969 - Carbon Fiber Composites
Rolls-Royce RB211 jet turbofan engine
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21. 1970 – Boron Fiber Composites
F-14 Tomcat
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22. 1981 - Ceramics
Space Shuttle Thermal Protection Tiles
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23. 1998 - Aluminum-Lithium
 Space
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Shuttle external fuel tank

24. 2005- GLARE
“GLAss-Reinforced” Fiber Metal Laminate (FML)
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25. 2009 – Boeing 787 Dreamliner
Large scale composite use
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26. Future- Intelligent Materials
Inbedded sensors and monitoring systems
Materials change properties and configurations
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27. Future- Nanotechnology
Ultra-strength Composites
Locally tailored materials for
specific requirements
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28. Summary
 What
is the brief history of the materials used
to construct aircraft?
 Why were these materials adopted?
 What is the future for materials in aircraft?
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