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VIBRATION is the enemy of all aircraft, as the fatigue it induces in crucial components eventually consigns them to the scrapyard. Now a “smart” material which damps that vibration could preserve airframes – and even make planes less noisy.
The vibrations are generated when vortices resulting from the plane’s motion through the air pass over the aircraft’s skin. Over time, this “flutter” stresses the skin and shortens the life of the plane. “Commercial aircraft are designed for 40,000 to 60,000 flights,” says Christian Boller of the University of Sheffield in the UK. “Too much vibration can easily reduce that…
