Towards certification by simulation of bird-strike event on composite wing leading edges

Project Title: Towards certification by simulation of bird-strike event on composite wing leading edges

Supervisor: Prof Brian G. Falzon CEng FRAeS, Professor of Composite Materials and Aerostructures, Head of School, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, [Email Address Removed]

Dr Zafer Kazanci, [Email Address Removed]

3-year studentship

Start date: September 2021

Application Deadline: 31/03/2021 

Project Aim: 

The aim of this project is to develop a high-fidelity design tool for the virtual testing of a bird strike on a composite wing, in collaboration with Spirit AeroSystems Belfast.

Project Description: 

Bird strike impact on the leading edge of wings tends to occur at stages of the flight cycle when an aircraft is arguably more vulnerable, i.e. at low altitude, during take-off and landing (approximately under 500 feet). Collisions at higher altitudes (over 3500 feet and up to approximately 20,000 feet) have been known to occur with a range of bird sizes, causing considerable damage. The increased use of composite materials in the latest generation of large passenger aircraft, their associated complex damage mechanisms and relative brittleness compared to their metallic counterparts, necessitates extensive physical testing for certification. This is very costly and time consuming and in this project a validated computational tool will be developed to facilitate a transition to virtual testing and certification.

Objectives:

•   Select candidate materials which have been extensively characterised and are representative of those used on current and future wings

•   Develop constitutive models incorporating damage mechanics

•   Develop bird model using SPH

•   Develop simple FEA/SPH models for preliminary model verification

•   Develop a high-fidelity model of representative wing section for model validation

•   Develop a multiscale modelling strategy to enable efficient full wing modelling

•   Transfer computation tool to Spirit AeroSystems Belfast.

Funding Information: 

UK nationals only - £15,285 stipend tax free. PhD students in the School may have the opportunity to apply to be demonstrators on undergraduate modules. Compensation for this can amount to more than £2,400 per year.