Structures

In a bid to ensure that considerable weight savings are made, and also make
room for the installation of essential electronic equipment, the aircraft was
designed to be constructed from a variety of materials. The majority of the
aircraft was however designed to be made from Aluminium Alloy 2024 due to
its high strength to weight ratio and its ability to be coated with corrosion
resistant materials. Other materials such as fiber glass metal laminate were
also used for the engine nacelles due to its heat resistant properties.
In addition, extensive calculations were made to determine the size of the
various components that would comprise the structure of the aircraft.
Properties such as the size of the stressed skin to be employed, the area of
the longerons and stringers to be used on the fuselage and wings, and the
thickness of the wing and tailplane spars were all calculated. Furthermore,
the rib spacing, the position of the front and rear spars of the wing, as well as
the positions of the bulkheads and frames that make up the fuselage were
also calculated for. All this was done to ensure that the aircraft would not
break up under the maximum loads it is likely to experience within its flight
operating envelope.

V-n Diagram Determination

In order to well design the structures of the aircraft, the loads that it will
experience at various flight conditions need to be evaluated and the
maximum loads determined. The aircraft structures are then then designed
to withstand these maximum loads and hence ensure that the aircraft is safe
for flight. A V-n diagram, which indicates the loads on the aircraft at various
velocities, was thus constructed according to Military Specification 1-8861b
(47) which states that all transport aircraft must have limit load factors of 2.5
and -1. The V-n diagram is shown in Figure 1.
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
Limit Load Factor
0.5
0
-0.50
-1
-1.5

2.5

500

2.5

1000

-1

Velocity (ft/s)

1500

Figure1: V-n Diagram for 200 Seater Aircraft

In the V-n diagram above, the point VA corresponds to the highest possible
stall speed of the aircraft. The point VD is the diving speed of the aircraft and
represents the highest possible speed that the structures of the aircraft are
designed to withstand. The point VC also represents the cruise speed of the
aircraft. The aircraft will thus be designed to withstand the loads experienced
at points VA and VD since these are the operating points at which the aircraft
structures suffer the most fatigue and stress.

Material Selection
The materials of which the aircraft is composed of need to be determined for
any good structural analysis to be carried out.
Wing Box
What material will be used for its construction? Why? What are its
properties? Why are those properties advantageous over those of other
materials? Are there any already existing aircraft that use the same
material?
Control Surfaces
The control surfaces will be made from Aluminium 2024 alloy primarily due
to its high strength to weight ratio and low cost as compared with other likely
candidates such as Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastic (CFRP). Also, the high
thermal conductivity of Al-2024 would facilitate the de-icing of the control
surfaces and hence ensure continued operation of the control surfaces even
in cold weather conditions. In addition, GKN heating mats manufactured by
GKN Aerospace will also be attached to the control surfaces to promote deicing. The use of Aluminium for the control surfaces is also desired since any
damage can easily be repaired unlike CFRP which will require the
replacement of the whole control surface.
Engine Nacelle
The CFM56-5c engines being used on the aircraft weigh . And are
capable of producing 64000 pounds of thrust. This suggests that an engine
nacelle that has both high heat resistant properties and high strength needs
to be used. Extensive research showed that GLARE, a fiber metal laminate
material currently being used in the Airbus A380 has both of these
properties. Being lighter than aluminum alloys, it is basically composed of
several layers of aluminum bonded together by epoxy and with glass fibers

woven in between these layers. The engine nacelles will then be attached to
the wings using an AMS 4914 titanium alloy.
Aircraft Skin
Aluminium 2024 will be used for the construction of the aircrafts stressed
skin. This is due to the low cost per kg of the aluminum as well as its
strength to weight ratio. The skin of the nose section will however be made
of fiber glass to ensure that the radar works efficiently. The fuselage frames
on which the skin will placed will also be composed of an aluminum alloy.
Due to the high strength required for the wing fuselage junction, titanium
alloy fasteners will be used to join the wing to the fuselage and the junction
will also be covered in fiber glass.
The landing gear will be stored in the wings and the doors of the bay in
which the landing gear is stored will be made of fiber glass. The landing gear
struts will however be made of Aluminum 7075.
Table 1 shows all materials to be used on the aircraft as well as their cost and
properties.

Structural Design
Now that the materials to be used for various components of the aircraft
have been determined, the structural design of these components can now
be carried out. The main components to be designed structurally include:

The Fuselage;
The Wings;
and The Horizontal and Vertical Stabilizer;

These components will be analyzed at points VA and VD as indicated in the

flight envelope in Figure 1.
Fuselage
The fuselage will be broken down into two sections, mid and rear, to facilitate
its design.
Rear Fuselage
The rear fuselage extends from the point where the fuselage begins to taper
to the leading edge of the vertical stabilizer. The section of the fuselage to be
analyzed is shown in Figure 2. The rear fuselage has a length of 27.854 ft and
the width of its wide end is 14.63 ft.

Rear Fuselage Section