15AES213 – Aerospace Structures – I

AIRCRAFT STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS

Department of Aerospace Engineering

Amrita University, Coimbatore
 Aircraft Structures
• The geometrical details of a/c structures (monocoque/ semi
monocoque construction) are much more complicated

• Requires the assemblage of thousands of parts (or structur

al elements)

• The size and shape of an a/c structural component are usu

ally determined based on non-structural consideration

– For instance, the airfoil is chosen according to aerodynamic lift and dra
g characteristics
Aircraft skeleton: Structural Elements
 Wing and Fuselage: Load transfer
• The skin is thin and has little bending stiffness to resist the air p
ressure

• Add stringers (stiffeners) to pick up the air loads

• Stiffeners are slender members with a moderate amount of bend

ing stiffness  leads to buckling when subjected to compression

• Buckling strength is enhanced by providing rigid ribs

• Ribs not only strengthen the stiffeners but also transfer the load
s to spars
– flanges of spar designed for bending
– webs of the spars designed to take transverse shear loads
Wing Structure
 Wing Structure
• Wing  to pick up the air and power plant loads and transfer the
m to the fuselage

• Wing c/s  airfoil  based on aerodynamic considerations

• Wing has to be designed for bending and twisting loads

• It consists of
– Axial members  stringers
– Bending members  spars (flanges)
– Shear panels  skin (for Torsion) and webs of spars (for Flexure)
 Wing Structure: Spar
• The spar is a heavy beam running span wise to take transver
se shear loads (web) and span wise bending (flanges)

• The spar consists of thin shear panel (web) with a heavy cap
at top and bottom

Vertical stiffeners

shear panel

Typical spar construction

 Wing Structure: Rib
• Ribs  are planar structures of carrying in-plane loads
•  placed chord-wise along the span at discrete locations
•  besides serving as load distributors, they hold a/f shape
•  also enhanced the buckling strength of the stringers

• Note that the rib is supported by span wise spars

Front spar
Rib Flange
Rear spar

Typical rib construction

 Wing Structure: Skin
• Cover skin + spar webs  efficient torsion member

• For subsonic a/c, skin is relatively thin  not designed for bending

• Supersonic airfoils are relatively thin  thicker skins are necessary

Two-spar wing cross-sections for subsonic aircraft with spars

alone

Two-spar wing cross-sections for subsonic aircraft with spars and stringers
 Fuselage Structure
• The fuselage is subjected to relatively small air loads
• Important loads on the fuselage
– Concentrated forces from wing reactions
– From landing gears
– Pay load
– Internal pressure (high speed and high altitude passenger a/c)
 circular cross-section
• The fuselage structure consists of a thin shell (skin) stiffened
by longerons (axial elements i.e., same as stringers) support
ed by many transverse frames (rings)
• Skin has to with stand to
– Shear stresses produced by torque and transverse forces
– Bears the hoop stresses produced by Internal pressure
• Longerons carry bending moments and axial force
 Fuselage Structure
• Frames (formers) are used to m Frames
aintain the shape and enhanced
the buckling strength of the long
erons

• Bulkheads are used to take conc

entrated loads from wings

Longerons