The class aims at providing the basic knowledge of aeronautical constructions and structures, with emphasis on regulations, mathematical and technical tools for evaluating their state of stress and strain, and to perform their first-level design. The student will also acquire knowledge of complex aeronautical structures, with emphasis on wing box and fuselage, and criteria to avoid their structural instability. The educational path aims to provide the student with the skills to 1) communicate issues relating to the structural design of aircraft with clarity, competence, and language properties; 2) to face, through the acquired analysis methodologies, structural problems, evaluating their adequacy to the project specifications; 3) proceed with the first level static design of structural elements typical of aircraft, such as wing structures and fuselage structures, which complies with criteria to avoid the structural instability.
scheda docente
materiale didattico
The teaching program is structured to provide students with knowledge and skills in the structural design of aeronautical components, using methods widely used in the aircraft conceptual and preliminary design phases.
The teaching program is divided into 36 lectures (equal to 9 CFU) divided into the following five main sections:
1) Beam theory: a review of bidirectional bending, torsion, and shear of open and closed thin-walled beams. Torsion and shear in multicell thin-walled beams, and tapered beams.
2) Introduction to aircraft design and semi-monocoque structures: loads acting on aircraft, regulations for aircraft design, box-wing concept, fuselage structure, fuselage, box-wing stress and strain analysis, and structural idealization.
3) Thin plates Kirchhoff's theory: in-plane problem, bending problem, eigenfunctions method for simply-supported plates.
4) Introduction to structural instability: buckling of the beam (Euler's critical load); buckling of thin plates; buckling on aeronautical structures.
5) Thin shells: shells in the form of a surface of revolution and loaded symmetrically with respect to their axis, pressurized fuselage stress analysis.
- C.T. Sun, Mechanics of Aircraft Structures, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1998 (for contents 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the syllabus)
- S.P. Timoshenko, Theory of Plates and Shells, McGraw-hill, 1959 (for contents 3 and 5 of the syllabus)
- Lectures notes by the teacher (for all the contents of the syllabus)
The educational material used by the teacher from time to time is indicated during lectures. The lecture notes are available on the Moodle platform to facilitate their use for attending and non-attending students. On the same platform, are also made available the specifications of the project the students have to perform during the year, as well as a collection of written tests of previous exams, to provide students with a valid and realistic test bench for the final exam.
Programma
The Aircraft Structures course is part of the activities of the Construction and aerospace structures (ING-IND/04 SSD).The teaching program is structured to provide students with knowledge and skills in the structural design of aeronautical components, using methods widely used in the aircraft conceptual and preliminary design phases.
The teaching program is divided into 36 lectures (equal to 9 CFU) divided into the following five main sections:
1) Beam theory: a review of bidirectional bending, torsion, and shear of open and closed thin-walled beams. Torsion and shear in multicell thin-walled beams, and tapered beams.
2) Introduction to aircraft design and semi-monocoque structures: loads acting on aircraft, regulations for aircraft design, box-wing concept, fuselage structure, fuselage, box-wing stress and strain analysis, and structural idealization.
3) Thin plates Kirchhoff's theory: in-plane problem, bending problem, eigenfunctions method for simply-supported plates.
4) Introduction to structural instability: buckling of the beam (Euler's critical load); buckling of thin plates; buckling on aeronautical structures.
5) Thin shells: shells in the form of a surface of revolution and loaded symmetrically with respect to their axis, pressurized fuselage stress analysis.
Testi Adottati
- T.H.G. Megson, Aircraft Structures for Engineering Students, Arnold, London, 1999 (for contents 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the syllabus)- C.T. Sun, Mechanics of Aircraft Structures, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1998 (for contents 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the syllabus)
- S.P. Timoshenko, Theory of Plates and Shells, McGraw-hill, 1959 (for contents 3 and 5 of the syllabus)
- Lectures notes by the teacher (for all the contents of the syllabus)
The educational material used by the teacher from time to time is indicated during lectures. The lecture notes are available on the Moodle platform to facilitate their use for attending and non-attending students. On the same platform, are also made available the specifications of the project the students have to perform during the year, as well as a collection of written tests of previous exams, to provide students with a valid and realistic test bench for the final exam.
Bibliografia Di Riferimento
Lectures notes by the teacher (for all the contents of the syllabus)Modalità Erogazione
The teaching is structured in 36 class lectures. Some classes are devoted to practical deepening the theoretical arguments through appropriate tutorials led by the teacher. Some classes are also dedicated to the presentation and discussion of a project in the field of aeronautical structures, which has to be carried out as group work by the students and presented at the final exam. The project is distributed in time to guarantee students the opportunity to take the exam at the first call after the end of the course. The educational material is available on the Moodle platform to facilitate its use for attending and non-attending students.Modalità Frequenza
Class attendance, although recommended, is not mandatory.Modalità Valutazione
Students' learning is assessed through a written test of 2 hours and a half and an oral examination. The written test includes an exercise and one or two theoretical questions with open answers aimed at verifying the level of understanding of the concepts and the ability of students to apply them in real-life contexts. Passing the test is the prerequisite to participate in the oral test, which includes theoretical and practical questions related to the entire program. During the oral examination, the students will discuss the group project carried out during the year, whose report is presented within one week before the date fixed for the written test.