Running head: AIRCRAFT CONSTRUCTION 1

Aircraft Construction

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Aircraft Construction
Q1.
a. The historical development of wood and steel for aircraft construction
Wood is considered to be the earliest material to be used in the construction of aircrafts.
It was combined with suitable canvas material. Birch and spruce are the two types of timber or
rather wood which were widely used. And this brings up the question why wood was used and
not any other material. Or was it just because of its availability? The answer is that wood
possesses a strength to weight ratio which is similar to those of aluminum alloys subjected to
heat. For instance, Birch has a 23ksi strength to weight ratio while spruce has 25ksi.
However, wood has quite a number of disadvantages in the construction of aircrafts.
First, wood is prone to change in its shape and size in case of moisture absorption or loss. Wood
can bulge in case it absorbs a lot of water and it warps when it loses water. Secondly, like any
other natural product, wood also portrays some inconsistencies in its properties. Another
disadvantage is that wood has a strong anisotropy which is as a result of its grain structure;
similar to Young’s modulus EL/ET=150. Timber also is weak and cannot withstand high stress.
Moreover, the wooden aircrafts needed more maintenance and inspection compared to aircrafts
made of metallic materials.
Some more advancements in the wood industry brought about the introduction of
plywood and synthetic resins used as adhesives. With better quality material available,
anisotropy was controlled and the strength of aircrafts improved. It was only until World War
One is when aircraft manufacturers discovered a big disadvantage with timber. They needed a
large chunk of timber to make military aircrafts. And because wood was imported, it meant that
large volumes were to be shipped something that proved to be costly as it was needed for food
and military personnel. Manufacturers ten decided to shift to the use of metal in aircraft
construction. This saw the introduction of aluminum and steel aircrafts in World War Two.
Steel actually came after aluminum. History has it that the first steel aircraft was made in
Germany in the year 1915 by Junkers. By World War Two that about in 1930, steel was now
being widely used to make spars sections. But due to its high specific gravity, its use dwindled
and is only used today in root wing attachments as well as landing gears. In 1960s high strength
steel were developed. This are steel gotten after elimination of carbon as the main impurity. The
strength to weight ratio is 25.6ksi making it have many advantages over the traditional steel.
AIRCRAFT CONSTRUCTION 3

First it is easy to weld and join, it has a higher resistance to corrosion. It also has a high fracture
toughness and a suitable strength to weight ratio. It is suitable in the making of arrester hooks,
gears, structural forgings, ejector seats, helicopter undercarriages as well as rocket motor casings.
The main disadvantage is that it is very expensive as compared to the conventional steel. Modern
stainless steel is mostly used in making experimental and research aircrafts where effects
associated with temperature are vital.