INJECTION MOLDED THERMOPLASTICS FLY HIGH WITH A380

摘要

The inside of a jet engine has traditionally been the territory of high performance metal alloys and advanced composites.When engineers at Rolls Royce began development of the Trent 900 engine that would be used to power the Airbus A380,the largest passenger jet in the world,they recognized that the way things had always been done before would not be good enough. In order to push the envelope,each part in the Trent 900 engine would need to conform to several criteria:It would,of course,have to meet certain structural demands,be able to withstand the cold of high altitude flight as well as the heat radiating from the engine after landing,and survive the occasional high speed collision with fowl and various other flying objects.Over the course of three and one half years,Rolls Royce and a select group of vendors developed the design criteria for the Outlet Guide Vane Infill Panel.The result was that this part,made of polyamide 46,became the first application of injection-molded thermoplastics to be used inside a commercial jet engine.This is the story behind this development.