THE POTENTIAL OF BERYLLIUM IN SUPERSONIC COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT
Abstract
A structural comparison is made of Be with the best alloys of Al, Ti, and steel for a variety of applications in supersonic transports. Such applications include components whose design is governed by tension criteria, by compression in stiffened and sandwich panels and in unstiffened plates, and by notched behavior, all over the temperature range to be encountered in future aircraft. It is inferred that a Be structural part might weigh from 1/4 to 1/2 less than the equal-function part made of more conventional metals. Calculations of the economics of Be usage in aircraft follow, consisting of several derivations of the worth-in-use of the weight reduction in commercial transports obtained by substituting a lighter-weight, but costlier, Be component. It is concluded that Be would offer many economic and weight-reducing advantages for transports. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 01, 1962
- Accession Number
- AD0275519
Entities
People
- George A. Hoffman
Organizations
- RAND Corporation