Aircraft Manufacturing Research Articles

An experimental assessment and optimisation of hole quality in Al2024-T3 aluminium alloy during abrasive water jet machining

Owing to its outstanding properties such as corrosion resistance, low density, relatively low cost, and stiffness, Al2024-T3 aluminium alloy has been widely applied in aircraft manufacturing. To perfectly assemble an aircraft, numerous high-quality holes are drilled into its structures employing conventional drilling processes. Conventional drilling poses some challenges such as thermal distortions, burr formations, and tool wear. Alternatively, abrasive water jet drilling (AWJD) is a thermal-free machining process that can be employed as an alternative to conventional drilling of aeronautical structures. Hence, in this work, the effect of abrasive water jet parameters, namely stand-off distance, water jet pressure, and abrasive mass flow rate, on hole-quality parameters was evaluated at traverse speed = 10 mm/min. Three parameters were stand-off distance = 1, 2, and 3 mm, abrasive mass flow rate = 200, 250, and 300 g/min, and water jet pressure = 1800, 2100, and 2600 bar. Using a 6 mm circular-movement diameter of the nozzle tip, optimal stand-off distance, water jet pressure, and abrasive mass flow rate obtained by multi-objective optimization were 2 mm, 250 g/min, and 2600 bar, respectively. The corresponding hole-quality parameters were Diameter = 6.232 mm, Kerf angle = 0.018°, Cylindricity = 0.051 mm, Perpendicularity = 0.033 mm, Circularity = 0.0041 mm and Surface roughness Ra = 2.909 µm. The results showed that water jet pressure had the greatest influence on Perpendicularity, Circularity; stand-off distance had the highest effect on Kerf angle; and abrasive mass flow rate has the largest influence on Hole diameter, Cylindricity and Surface roughness Ra, and Rz at the given value of traverse speed. The adopted optimization process for abrasive water jet of Al2024-T3 aluminium alloy was successfully verified through confirmation runs, clearly illustrating its benefits.

Defense Industrial Base and Network Structure: Measurement, Analysis and Public Policies for the Brazilian Case

ABSTRACT This work aims to identify sectors of the Defense Industrial Base (DIB) that have the potential to generate productive and technological spillovers. We selected companies that sold to the Ministry of Defense (MD) between 2001 and 2019 from the Brazilian Federal Government’s public procurement database (ComprasNet). These companies were chosen based on their sectoral relevance according to relevant theoretical works. Our contribution lies in using economic activity co-occurrence reported by companies, using microdata in an unprecedented exercise in the field of defense studies. The main findings show that dominant sectors with higher technological intensity tend to have a closer relationship and greater diversity of relationships within the DIB compared to other sectors. By defining sectors with high potential for technological interaction based on relevant characteristics such as centrality, technological intensity, and MD budget share, we were able to identify the existence of sectoral clusters that can generate greater productive and technological spillovers, with particular emphasis on aircraft manufacture and ICT-related industrial sectors.

Towards sustainable regional aviation: Environmental potential of hybrid-electric aircraft and alternative fuels

The aviation sector needs to reduce its environmental impacts, like climate change and air pollution. New hybrid-electric aircraft concepts may contribute to abating part of these impacts. But to what extent and under which conditions? This study addresses these questions in the context of regional aviation and identifies technologies and concrete actions required for more environmentally sustainable aviation. The environmental impacts of emerging hybrid-electric aircraft configurations deployed in 2030, 2040, and 2050 have been comprehensively quantified using prospective life cycle assessment. The entire life cycle of the conventional and hybrid-electric aircraft configurations was encompassed, covering various technologies and systems like batteries, fuel cells, hydrogen, and selected alternative aviation fuel (AAF) systems. For these elements, detailed life cycle inventories stemming from primary data, literature, and prospective environmental databases were used, and uncertainty was evaluated. Results showed that hybrid-electric aircraft with Li-ion batteries appear as a promising transition technology in the short-term while aircraft propelled by fuel cells using hydrogen from electrolysis yield important environmental benefits relative to conventional aircraft in longer time horizons. In contrast, the studied AAFs present little or no environmental benefits when considering environmental impacts holistically, demonstrating the need to revise existing AAF frameworks and incentives globally. Environmental burden-shifting from flight emissions in conventional aircraft systems to airport operations and aircraft manufacturing in hybrid-electric aircraft is also observed in the results, thus calling for strengthened support to airports in their sustainability management and increased integration of ecodesign practices in future aircraft design and development.

A Review of Transportation Aviation Operational Safety Research in China and the United States

According to relevant data from ICAO and China's civil aviation, the global aviation industry is in a gradual recovery phase. As the world's first and second largest aviation markets, China and the U.S. have extensive cooperation in a number of fields such as aircraft and airborne equipment manufacturing, pilot training, air traffic management, energy conservation and emission reduction. Working together to address challenges and accelerate economic recovery is the main theme of the world today, and is a common priority for the global civil aviation industry. China and the United States have the responsibility to cooperate in all aspects under the framework of ICAO's Global Development Initiative and play a greater role in the recovery and development of global civil aviation.

Non-uniform heat source or sink on the radiated and thermophoretic flow of slender body of paraboloid and cone revolutions in a saturated medium with Brownian motion

Heat and mass transfer acquired the attention of investigators and experts because of massive uses in the field of medicine, manufacturing of modern aircrafts, uses in advanced water filtration plants, distillation process of water, more efficient electronic instruments, more efficient batteries, textile industry, uses as manufacturer in cosmetics industry and modern defense equipment. By viewing this, we considered the numerical study of Fourier flux and buoyancy driven forces on the flow of thermal and diffusion transmission of body revolutions (Paraboloid and cone), situated in a water-logged Darcy medium by allowing the radiation, Brownian motion, time-space dependent heat source or sink, and thermopheretic. Later on, the governing system is solved via Runge–Kutta method. Properties of convoluted governing measures of the organisms on local Nusselt and Sherwood numbers along with velocity, thermal and diffusion shapes are described with the aid of graphically and tabular form. It is stimulating to declare that the non-uniform heat source or sink is highly dominated in cone form of revolution as associated to paraboloid form of flow due to more distribution of mass transfer. From this, one can draw the conclusion that wherever there are higher mass transportation phenomena, cone-shaped body of revolution can be used. It is found that the time- and space-dependent heat source or sink performs as a regulating factor of the transmission of flow phenomena.

METAL ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING IN SPACE AND AEROSPACE EXPLORATION: CURRENT PROCESSES, MATERIAL SELECTION AND CHALLENGES

Space and aerospace exploration have the highest regulations regarding design and manufacturing processing. As a result, an immense multi-tier manufacturing system has been developed because of the tooling and machinery associated with the production of high-grade spacecraft and aircraft. Furthermore, the nature of the supply chain and hefty capital investments further complicate spacecraft and aircraft manufacturing. Metal additive manufacturing (AM) offers the best solution to produce complex parts from digital information without the need for large amounts of tooling and machinery. MAM represents a promising aspect of innovations to revolutionize the way manufacturing is designed and constructed for many applications. Moreover, various research activities are being carried out in the aerospace industry for MAM process, which produces parts that would be impossible to create using conventional manufacturing (CM) methods. MAM has gained popularity in recent years from its initial stages of development in the research phase to providing a wide range of functional applications in the aerospace industry to manufacture and repair a wide range of components used in spacecraft and aircraft. The significant growth in MAM process can be attributed to its commercial and performance advantages within the aerospace industry. In this paper, a detailed assessment of existing MEM processes is presented, emphasizing the ability to manufacture and repair metal parts for the aerospace industry, providing information about the materials currently in use, as well as identifying possible future applications and challenges. There is no doubt that the information provided in this study will support exploring MAM’s new opportunities for future needs in space and aerospace exploration.

МЕТОДЫ ОПТИМИЗАЦИИ МОДЕЛЬНОГО РЯДА ПРИ ФОРМИРОВАНИИ СОСТАВА И СТРУКТУРЫ ПАРКА ВОЗДУШНЫХ СУДОВ В РАМКАХ СОЗДАНИЯ ЕДИНОЙ ДАЛЬНЕВОСТОЧНОЙ АВИАКОМПАНИИ

The article considers the urgent task of optimizing the use of the existing and promising fleet of aircraft of domestic production within the framework of the creation of a single Far Eastern airline. The data on the assessment of the required number of aircraft of domestic production through a single consolidated order from all airlines of the Far Eastern region analyzed. It is shown that mathematical modeling and optimization methods play a significant role in the optimal design of the number and nomenclature of aircraft in the region, which are successfully used to select the best parameters and characteristics of aircraft or its subsystems at various stages of design, dividing the task into two interrelated models: parametric and operational. A systematic scientific and methodological approach to the external design of aircraft proposed, so it is possible to generate many design options for aircraft, limiting only those parameters that significantly affect the efficiency of the airline's operation. The result of the study is the fulfillment of the task of optimizing the aircraft model range for subsequent operation in the conditions of the Far North, the Arctic, Siberia and the Far East. The analytical materials obtained allow us to compare the expansion plan of the route air transport network and the calendar plan for the production of aviation equipment for the united Far Eastern airline based on the produced relationship chart between airlines and aircraft manufacturers.

State management of real estate of industrial and transport in an unstable economy

The research topic is relevant due to the demonstrated principles of economic sovereignty within the economic development strategy of the Russian Federation and the implementation of new mechanisms of public administration. The study analyses government action under current recessional conditions focused on the management of the real estate of industrial associations and transport infrastructure. In the article, real estate assets within these sectors are collectively categorised as subjects in the public administration system, being closely connected and forming the basis for the economic security of the country. According to the authors, real estate should be considered a controlled and manageable resource, given its substantial monetary value. As an example of state management of this resource, the article examines the operations of federal services, along with the processes occurring in the automotive, aircraft manufacturing and transport infrastructure sectors. The article examines the assets of foreign automobile plants that departed due to sanctions, focusing on industrial facilities in major Russian cities. The measures of state support for the infrastructure of the automotive and aircraft industries in accordance with the strategies outlined by the Ministry of Industry and Trade are explored. The aircraft industry is studied in the context of the emergence of government orders and the operations of the public joint-stock company United Aircraft Corporation The transport industry is considered as an industry supported by the state through financing new infrastructure facilities and reconstruction of existing ones.

Study and analysis of the PFMEA approach for the aerospace manufacturing industries: evidence from aircraft manufacturers

Study and analysis of the PFMEA approach for the aerospace manufacturing industries: evidence from aircraft manufacturers

A Model Based on CNN-LSTM for the Remaining Life Prediction of Equipment in Aircraft Assembly Pulsation Production Line

The aircraft assembly pulsation production line is an advanced and efficient assembly method widely used in aircraft manufacturing. However, equipment malfunctions would occur and can disrupt production takt, affecting the production efficiency. Therefore, accurately predicting the remaining useful life (RUL) of equipment is very crucial. To meet the requirements of both prediction accuracy and efficiency for RUL model used in aircraft pulsation production line, this work proposed a model combining convolutional neural network (CNN) and long short-term memory (LSTM) for RUL prediction. Optimization was performed for the number of neurons in the proposed model with genetic algorithm (GA) to regulate the prediction accuracy and efficiency. Two public datasets representing typical equipment in the pulsation production line were used to validate the proposed model. The results show that the proposed model outperforms the traditional model with substantial improvements in the fitness function of 19.8%, and 30.2% for the two testing datasets. These findings demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed model in enhancing the accuracy and efficiency of RUL prediction.

The Trilogy of Personal Jurisdiction and the Importance Of Ford

Litigants and judges alike have struggled to understand and resolve the parameters of personal jurisdiction, particularly in product liability cases. This results in significant costs and time which is likely to be of little benefit to anyone. Much of this confusion arises from two problems: (1) most of the early Supreme Court decisions on personal jurisdiction arose from contractual disputes; and (2) when the economy expanded after World War II, and new automobiles, commercial aircraft, appliances, and other complex products appeared, the Court’s attempts to resolve personal jurisdiction issues were unsuccessful. For over three decades, the Supreme Court failed to produce a clear majority opinion, while at the same time, these cases were becoming more common and complex. In the past decade, however, the Court has quietly produced a trilogy of virtually unanimous opinions that offer pathways to resolve personal jurisdiction disputes. These decisions will be particularly useful in product liability cases of all kinds, which often involve suit-related events occurring across multiple jurisdictions. Once lawyers and judges understand this clarified framework, it should become easier for plaintiffs to make better decisions about where to bring their case and enable both plaintiffs and defendants to spend less time and expense litigating personal jurisdiction disputes.

Evaluating Quality Management in an Aircraft Manufacturing Company through the Lens of MBNQA Criteria

Evaluating Quality Management in an Aircraft Manufacturing Company through the Lens of MBNQA Criteria

Integrating Variety, Assembly, and Lightweight Design in Product Architecture of Cabin Monument

In aircraft cabin design, particularly in the design of aircraft monuments such as galleys, there are specific conflicting objectives that needs to be balanced. The key objectives are to meet customer requirements, optimise assembly processes for increased production and achieve lightweight design for efficient operations. The paper presents a methodical approach that integrates variety, assembly efficiency and lightweight design considerations into the early stages of product architecture design. Using the after monument of the Airbus A320 family as an example, the paper proposes specific module drivers such as ‘common unit’, ‘different specification’ and ‘load path compatible modules’ to guide the design process. These module drivers aim to harmonise the different objectives of stakeholders, including aircraft manufacturers, cabin manufacturers and airlines. The method is illustrated using a geometric representation of product architecture alternatives optimised for each of the variety, assembly and lightweighting objectives. Overall, the paper contributes to the advancement of a stakeholder-oriented modularisation approach and provides a starting point for future developments. It highlights the importance of defining module drivers and visualising the trade-offs to achieve a balanced product architecture in the aviation industry.

An Exploration on the Cultivating of Dual-Innovation Composite Talents Based on the Innovation Ability of College Students—A Case Investigation of Aircraft Manufacturing

An Exploration on the Cultivating of Dual-Innovation Composite Talents Based on the Innovation Ability of College Students—A Case Investigation of Aircraft Manufacturing

Report of Aircraft Manufacturers and Green Transformation in Europe

Report of Aircraft Manufacturers and Green Transformation in Europe

УПРАВЛЕНИЕ IT-ПРОЕКТАМИ НА ПРЕДПРИЯТИЯХ АВИАСТРОИТЕЛЬНОЙ ОТРАСЛИ С УЧЕТОМ ТРЕБОВАНИЙ ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКОЙ БЕЗОПАСНОСТИ

The article analyzes the regulatory framework governing the introduction of information technologies and systems, digitalization at enterprises of the aircraft industry, as well as the specifics of the organization of production in this industry and, as a result, the specifics of the introduction of information technologies in modern innovative and economic conditions. Based on the analysis, the main factors influencing the implementation and evaluation of projects in the field of information technology (IT projects) implementation at aircraft manufacturing enterprises, the main possible criteria for the overall assessment of IT projects were formulated, and the classification of the main risk-forming factors and threats affecting IT projects was presented.

The Impact of Emerging Technologies in the Aviation Manufacturing Industry: A Case Study of the Gradual-Change Factors in Shaanxi, PR China

As China’s economy becomes more robust, the government has emphasized the need to increase the civil aviation industry’s rapid development and reduce civil aviation’s technological gap compared to other advanced aircraft manufacturers. The use of the appropriate technologies in the aviation industry can help achieve the government’s plan of creating more jobs and increasing its revenue through the civil aviation industry. However, emerging technologies’ uncertainty and dynamic nature have led to significant challenges when these technologies are applied to the aviation manufacturing industry. This article applies the principles and methods of system dynamics based on the gradual-change factors of emerging technologies as identified through expert interviews to construct conceptual models depicting the gradual-change of emerging technologies in the aviation manufacturing field. Historical data from Shaanxi province were used to simulate and analyze the gradual development of emerging technologies. An analysis of the simulation results revealed that the rapid growth of competitive technologies in the growth process inhibits the gradual-change of emerging technologies. Also, increasing enterprise innovation capabilities, market demand expansion, and technology optimization significantly promote emerging technologies’ development and application. Furthermore, the research result shows that competitive products and technologies influence the gradual development of emerging technologies. Finally, the results indicate that the civil aviation industry should optimize the performance and function of emerging technologies during the early development stage instead of at the market application stage.

Systematic Development of a Virtual Commissioning Architecture for an Automated Production System

This paper delves into Virtual Commissioning’s (VC) crucial role in accelerating aircraft manufacturing amid shorter product life cycles, employing the Software Platform Embedded Systems (SPES) methodology. Developing an adaptable VC architecture tailored for this industry, the study reveals SPES’s efficacy but highlights areas for improvement. Despite its strengths, limitations in decision support and clarity have been identified, recognizing the dynamic nature of industrial scenarios. Offering a valuable blueprint, the presented systematic development process aids researchers and practitioners in the evolving domain of VC and automated production systems. The developed architecture demonstrates the incorporation of complex industrial requirements. However, as the requirements are generic, such as scalability, the architecture is also applicable to other application scenarios.

The Role of the Government in the Development of the Aircraft Manufacturing Industry in Korea: Implications for Developing Countries

The Role of the Government in the Development of the Aircraft Manufacturing Industry in Korea: Implications for Developing Countries

ESTIMATION OF FATIGUE CURVES USING ORTHOGONAL POLYNOMIALS

The article proposes a methodology for processing fatigue tests carried out to assess the fatigue curve of materials and structural elements, the most important design characteristic of the endurance, service life and reliability of aircraft products, transport engineering and other structures operating under conditions of both regular and irregular loading. The task of estimating the parameters of the fatigue curve is often complicated by the limited scope of fatigue tests, significant scattering of cyclic durability, uneven duplication of experiments at a given level of alternating stress amplitudes, the presence of censoring, especially at low levels, and other factors. which necessitates the use of the weighted least squares method. These circumstances lead to the violation of the conditions for using standard methods of regression analysis and the least squares method. This is especially true for the confidence assessment of the fatigue curve, the accuracy of which significantly depends on these factors. For this purpose, the article proposes to apply the procedure of orthogonalization of factor characteristics to estimate the parameters of the fatigue curve, which reduces the errors arising from standard approaches and makes it possible to obtain accurate confidence intervals for durability. A special feature of the technique is the use of orthogonal polynomials in statistical procedures, which makes it possible to modify the covariance matrix of estimates by converting it to a diagonal form, regardless of the spread of the weight parameters of the original data. These transformations make it possible to perform statistical procedures for point and confidence estimation when processing the results of fatigue tests. To test the methodology, a statistical analysis of a large volume (about 200 samples) of fatigue tests of samples with varying degrees of stress concentration from titanium alloy VT3-1 and aluminum alloy V-95 was performed, algorithms and computer programs were developed in the public domain.