1. Materials for airframes, the A380 and beyond
Technology Briefing on Materials at Farnborough 04 Airshow
July 20-21, 2004
Materials for airframes, the A380 and beyond

2. Materials for airframes, the A380 and beyond
Technology Briefing on Materials at Farnborough 04 Airshow
July 20-21, 2004
Presented by
Alain Garcia
Executive Vice President
Airbus Engineering
Jürgen Klenner
Senior Vice President
Materials for airframes, the A380 and beyond

3. Superior airframe: Airbus vision
CUSTOMER
Maintenance
free airframe
Highest
performance
Environmentally
friendly airframe
AIRBUS
ENVIRONMENT

4. The Airbus airframe philosophy
Airbus sustained leadership in advanced aircraft structures by:
Being always at the forefront of technology.
Applying the most advanced structure technologies as a prime goal since the beginning of Airbus.
Considering customer needs, performance, environment/health & safety aspects.
Pushing new technologies, carefully evaluated and introduced step-by-step as soon as they are matured.
Fostering the competition between different materials to exploit their physical potentials and enhance their performance.

5. Materials for airframes
Broad experience
Repairability
Static behavior
Improvement potential
Strengths
Fatigue behavior
Low density
No corrosion
Best suited for smart structures
Improved fatigue
Better “tailoring”
Higher fire “resistance”
Less corrosion
(compared to Al-alloys)
High density
Fatigue behavior
Corrosion behavior
High costs of new alloys
Weaknesses
Impact behavior
No “plasticity”
Repairability
Recycling
Lower stiffness
Higher density
Less industrialized process
(compared to CFRP)
Metals (Al-alloys)
Composites (CFRP)
Fiber Metal Laminates

6. What the airframe requires
Upper skin:
Compression/stability
Lower skin:
Tension/crack growth
Bending and
Torsion
Longitudinal stress
Static/residual strength
Crack growth
Impact
Shear
stress
Bending
Impact
Hoop stress and longi-
tudinal stress
Shear stress due to trans-
verse shear and torsion
Impact
Compression due to bending,
stability, static strength,
corrosion resistance
Hoop
stress
Impact
High local
loads

7. Composites vs. metal: The benefit of competition
1970
1980
1990
2000
2020
2010
CFRP design
Fairings
Pressure bulkhead
Keel beam
Floor panels
Al-Li
LBW,
extrusions
Metal design
GLARE®, LBW,
EBW, Ti alloys
CFRP
Fuselage
Fuselage section
Center wing box
Adaptive
Structures,
SHM
FSW, Al-Sc
advanced
Al casting
Successor
GLARE®
Moveables,
Rudder
VTP, HTP Flaps,
CFRP Wing
effect
effetc

8. How Airbus airframes have evolved
A300/A310
A320
A330/A340
A380
A400M …
CFRP primary structure: Center Wing Box, Rear fuselage, wing ribs
Higher modulus carbon fibers
Upper fuselage: fiber metal laminate
LBW, Electron Beam Welding
Resin film infusion
Automated fiber placement
New Al-, Ti-alloys …
CFRP primary structure: flaps, horizontal tailplane (HTP)
Automated Tape laying
Laser Beam Welding (LBW) (A318) …
CFRP primary structure: HTP as fuel tank
CFRP primary structure: pressure bulkhead, keel beam, floor panels (A )
Resin infusion techniques
Thermoplastic CFRP (A )
New Al-alloys
GFRP fairings, radome, fin leading edges
CFRP movables: spoilers, airbrakes, rudder
CFRP primary structure: fin (A ) …
CFRP wing
further airframe innovations …
1974 (EIS)

9. Airbus: The leader in CFRP technology
A400M
A380
CFRP structural weight % A A
A320
A310/200
A300
Year

10. Airbus: The leader in metal technology
Advanced metal technologies
Laser Beam Welding (LBW)
New Al-alloys: e.g. Al-Li
New Ti-alloys
Electron Beam Welding
Friction Stir Welding
Extrusions, Castings, …
Example: section 18, lower panel
Stringer to skin LBW
Stringer guiding system
Beam guidance

11. Airbus: The leader in fiber metal laminates (FML)
GLARE® application in A380 upper fuselage and D-noses (HTP, VTP)
High performance FML (e.g. improved static strength, improved stiffness)
Example: section 18, main deck panel
500 µm
GLARE® Micrograph
Composite material (GFRP)
Aluminum material

12. A380: The most advanced airframe (examples)
CFRP Floor Beams
for Upper Deck
CFRP Wing Ribs
CFRP Section 19.1
CFRP Section 19
GLARE®
CFRP Center Wing Box
Integral Structures (LBW)
More Ti & New
Ti-processing
(electron beam welding)

13. New horizon: The “intelligent” aircraft structure
Further approaching the Superior Airframe Vision, Airbus is aiming at the “intelligent” structure:
Best suited to local airframe needs, i.e. optimised hybrid design
Self-monitoring and reacting
Adaptable to changing requirements
Highest tolerance towards external effects
to enable:
Leading edge of performance
Minimum maintenance, extended operational life
Highest possible environmental friendliness

14. Structure Health Monitoring – Aspect of Airbus “intelligent” airframe
Human nervous system: The brain detects intensity and location of pain and judges when to go to the doctor.
Evaluation
SHM system: The SHM System checks the structure and evaluates the follow up actions for maintenance.
SHM 1st Generation: Maintenance cost reduction, increased aircraft availability
SHM 2nd and 3rd Generation: New design philosophy enabling weight reduction

15. “Intelligent” aircraft structure: more than SHM
Self-Cleaning
Self-Monitoring
Adaptive Structure
Self-Healing
Nano-Materials
Nanotechnology
Sensors
Material Matched
New Design
Synergy between fuselage
and cabin interior

16. Future Airbus airframe technology
High performance “Intelligent” airframe
Advanced composite & metallic materials
New Composite material applications
Optimized material matched design
Composites adapted design
Airbus airframe vision
2st, 3rd Generation SHM
Fiber Metal Laminates
Nanotechnology: materials & sensors
New metals and adapted design
1st Generation Structural Health Monitoring
Composites primary & secondary structure
Adaptive structures
New material processes
1970
1990
2010
2030

17. Conclusion
Best materials and related technologies have been used/will be used in future in Airbus airframe for the specific application: THE BEST MATERIAL FOR THE SPECIFIC APPLICATION not ONE MATERIAL FOR ALL.
The philosophy of best material use leads to a hybrid airframe adapted to the local specific requirements (mixture of different materials).
The high performance “intelligent” Airbus airframe is:
- optimized regarding new materials matched design
- self-monitoring and reacting
- adaptable to changing requirements
The high performance “intelligent” Airbus airframe technology is introduced step-by-step after demonstrating maturity, securing the leading role of Airbus in airframe technology