ADVITAC - ADVance Integrated Composite TailCone
Overview
Background & policy context:
Nowadays lightweight structures are mandatory in order to significantly reduce CO2 emissions of any aircraft. Unfortunately, production costs of low weight structures are more expensive than those of classical structures.
The tail cone has a very special position relating to aircraft systems, being both a component of the aircraft fuselage (ATA54) and also an interface of the Auxiliary Power System (ATA49). Today's tail cones are made of composite materials and are heavy. This is mainly because of the large number of requirements introduced by equipment integration. They are also costly, due primarily to the manufacturing costs of the double curvature stiffened structure (this is partly due to assembly constraints and partly to lay up constraints).
The ADVITAC (Advanced Integrated Tail Cone) project dealt with the development and production of aircraft composite structures. The ADVITAC consortium addressed the key issues concerning the composite tail cone structure and subsequent APU integration.
Objectives:
The consortium addressed a set of solutions regarding the following High Level Target Concepts: the cost efficiency air transport system HLTC and the ultra green air transport system HLTC. The ADVITAC project aimed at:
- Lowering production costs by 30% with regards to the actual composite aero structure;
- Lowering weight by 10% with regards to the actual composite aero structure;
- Specifying a new generation of composite architecture, allowing an extensive function integration (acoustic, fireproof, electrical and strength);
- Significantly improving the knowledge of interaction between innovative technologies, allowing a fully automated integrated process, including automated dry perform, through thickness reinforcement and an infusion process.
Methodology:
The State-of-the-Art technologies in the ADVITAC project addressed key project goals associated with lowered costs and lowered weight. This included automated processes, less fully integrated structures, enhanced composite properties and new structures and architecture.
The ADVITAC consortium provided an overview of all the set of problems concerning tail cone structure and APU integration. Significant weight and cost savings were expected after all partner issues had been consolidated in a design to cost approach.
The ADVITAC project was coordinated by Daher Aerospace (France), along with partners Coriolis Composites (France), Inasmet-Tecnalia (Spain), FFT (Belgium), NLR (The Netherlands), Recomet (Romania) and Cranfield University (UK). Embraer (Brazil) and Honeywell (USA) were involved as observers.
Share this page