Aircraft Carrier Exposure Testing of Aircraft Materials

摘要

Previous studies have demonstrated that the aircraft carrier environment in the western Pacific Ocean is far more severe than other marine or industrial environments. Laboratory accelerated tests do not necessarily reproduce the real time corrosion behavior of materials on board an aircraft carrier on deployment. Test and control specimens were affixed on exposure racks and installed on aircraft carriers to compare adhesive bonding primers for aluminum and to determine the static property behavior of various aluminum alloys after shipboard exposure. Laboratory accelerated sulfur dioxide salt spray tests were conducted on three of the same aluminum alloys. After multiple deployments, significant reductions in ductility occurred for some aluminum alloys while slight changes occurred in static strength values. Peak aged 7075- T6 aluminum sustained as much as 87% reduction in ductility and overaged 7075-T7 sustained a 45% reduction in ductility.