Nearly 300 advanced composite components manufactured by Northrop Corporation are flying on U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy supersonic aircraft as part of a three-year Air Force/Navy/Northrop supportability evaluation. Both thermoplastic and high-temperature thermoset composites were evaluated for their in-service performance on 48 USAF and Navy F-5E fighter and USAFT-38 trainer aircraft in the first large-scale, long-term maintenance evaluation of these advanced materials. Northrop manufactured four types of doors for the project-avionics bay access, oil fill, inlet duct inspection, and a main landing gear door. The doors are made of PEEK (polyetheretherketone) thermoplastic, which is tougher and potentially less expensive to manufacture than conventional composites; and 5250-3 BMI (bismaleimide) thermoset, which is manufactured like a conventional epoxy composite but can withstand higher service temperatures. Results obtained so far indicate that both the BMI and PEEK are durable with PEEK being somewhat better than BMI.


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    Title :

    Supportability Evaluation of Thermoplastic and Thermoset Composites


    Contributors:

    Publication date :

    1990


    Size :

    9 pages


    Type of media :

    Report


    Type of material :

    No indication


    Language :

    English




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