Aero-engine Manufacturers Research Articles

Autogenous welding of Hastelloy X to Mar-M 247 by laser

Mar-M 247, a nickel-base cast alloy, is used widely in aeroengines for parts such as blades, vanes and airfoil. Hastelloy X is one of the most oxidation- and corrosion-resistant nickel-base wrought alloys. In order to join such alloys in aeroengine manufacturing, laser beam welding has been carried out with lap and butt joints using a 1.2 and a 6.0 kW CO 2 laser. Cracks in the fusion zone can be eliminated by deliberate misalignments in the ranging of the laser beam by 0.2−0.3 mm onto Hastelloy X. Correlations between cracking behavior, hardness of the beads and misalignments have been investigated. Metallurgical analysis using electron microscopes has revealed the redistribution of alloy elements, the microstructures of the fusion zone and microfissures in the heat-affected zone (HAZ).

High-temperature thin-film strain gauges

Abstract To respond to the industrial interest of aeroengine manufacturers in carrying out instrumentation techniques for blade vibration measurements, ONERA is developing thin-film resistance strain gauges suitable for dynamic stress measurements up to 900 °C. The strain gauge, deposited by r.f. sputtering onto nickel-based superalloys, is described. It consists of a NiCoCrAlY coating, insulating layer (Al2,O3), sensing layer (NiCr, PdCr), intermediate splicing layer (Pt) and a protective film (Al2,O3 or SiO2). The masking of the layers, the splicing of the thin films to wires and the deposition technique on complex three-dimensional structures are presented. The first electrical and mechanical properties of the sensing layers are described, as well as preliminary results concerning the thermal stability of the gauges.

No easy road for SNECMA FMS

Considers the installation of a flexible manufacturing system at French aero engine manufacturer SNECMA. Examines the preliminary study, the computer hierarchy of the FMS, the physical layout, the workforce and training, and the problems encountered. Concludes that while there have been minor problems, and further FMS′s are unlikely, the current FMS is a source of pride to the company.

Rolls‐Royce Strikes a Chord to Tune into Wider Turbofan Market

NO name is said to carry a higher reputation in the design and manufacture of advanced aero engines than Rolls‐Royce. With its innovative designs and engineering skills it was only to be expected that the company would be a finalist in the Manufacturing Effectiveness Award 1984, organised by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, on behalf of sponsors Willis Faber.

Advances in manufacturing technology

In this presentation I will review the advances in manufacturing technology applied to the manufacture of large civil aero engines, but first I think we ought to look back and put these advances into some sort of historical perspective.Traditionally the level of automation in civil aero engine manufacture has been relatively low. However, the level of technology in the component and that applied to the individual manufacturing operations has been very high.Automation, from the start of the Industrial Revolution has been directed to the mass production of high volumes of relatively simple stable design components using conventional materials and production processes.

First Royal Society Technology Lecture - Aircraft power plants—past, present and future

It is indeed an honour to give a lecture to the Royal Society and I feel particularly privileged by the invitation of the President and Council to deliver the Society’s First Technology Lecture. The subject chosen seems to me a very topical one, both because of the very advanced technology required for the design and manufacture of aero engines and of the interest which has recently centred on the aircraft industry in this country and the controversy on its future. It is now a matter of history that the successful development of the turbo-jet engine by Whittle created a situation where at the end of the Second World War aero engine firms in Britain had a commanding lead. The giants in the aero engine industry had been Pratt & Whitney and Curtiss-Wright in the U. S. A. and both were granted licences to manufacture British jet engines. The Whittle patent was sold to the U. S. A. for a mere song. General Electric had been given all the information on the Whittle W2 jet engine. Technical collaboration agreements were developed with General Electric, Westinghouse and Allison in the U. S. A. and the only other country in the western world with an aircraft gas turbine creative capability was France, who, apart from Turbomeca specializing in small engines, became dependent either upon licences or technical collaboration.

An Introduction to the Twenty‐fifth S.B.A.C. Flying Display and Exhibition

THE Twenty‐fifth S.B.A.C. Flying Display and Exhibition is to be held at Farnborough during the week Monday, September 5, to Sunday, September 11, promises to be one of the most interesting yet held as for the first time member companies of the Society have nominated for entry aircraft from member countries of the European A.I.C.M.A. (Association Internationale des Contructeurs de Materiel Aérospatial) that are powered by British engines. Seven European aircraft will be taking part, four of them sponsored by Bristol Siddeley Engines Ltd. and three by Rolls‐Royce Ltd. The dominant theme of the Show will be collaboration, and it is fitting that the foreign aircraft have been sponsored by the aero engine manufacturers as they have advanced farther along this road than the airframe companies. Between them, they have close associations with practically all the major engine manufacturers in the Western world. Apart from the models and displays which will be mounted by the major airframe and engine manufacturers reflecting their growing involvement with European projects, the stands of the Associate Members of the Society of British Aerospace Companies will have many examples of materials, techniques and equipment that these companies are producing in support of current programmes, some of which will be for the American military aircraft now on order for the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy.

A Method for Studying Vibrations Transmitted to the Hands

A Method for Studying Vibrations Transmitted to the Hands

Metallurgical Problems of Aero Engine Manufacture

The modern internal combustion engine, particularly the power unit developed for aircraft propulsion, provides a subject of great metallurgical interest and speculation.The requirements of the aero engine designer for greater engine power while retaining a low weight/power ratio has inspired research into fuels of improved characteristics, and on the metallurgical side into materials of superior properties to those previously available.