The current materials used for these parts, which are metallic, are superalloys strengthened by the formation of hardening particles and having a complex microstructure, which consists of a single" grain" (crystal formed by the alloy atoms) for blade applications and of a polycrystalline material (aggregates of grains) for the disks
But the addition of some metallic elements to the starting materials can also directly force the formation of Nb5Si3 during solidification... Stefan Drawin is senior research engineer in the MetallicMaterials and Processing Department[ DMSM]. He is coordinator of the European Ultmat project
Study of metallicmaterials: shown here, the formation of crystalline structures consecutive to the mechanical hardening of the cobalt. Dassault Mirage III V aircraft in S1MA in 1965 at Modane (vertical take-off and landing aircraft, program stopped in 1966
The activities of the Materials and Structures Department, DMAS, deal with the microstructure of materials (from the atomic scale up to the macroscopic scale), the static and dynamic behaviour to rapid or vibratory dynamics of structures in their environment up to crash or impact, and also include the design, development and characterisation of materials and elements of metallic, ceramic or composite structures
But then we come up against the limits of the materials used to manufacture the engine... "In the eighties, we had high hopes for ceramic matrix composites; that is, ceramics reinforced with fibers", recalls Michel Parlier, researcher at the Department of composite materials and systems at Onera... That is why Onera is working on designs for new high performance materials, oxide- based eutectic ceramics
Furthermore, its diffraction can be controlled by activating" the surface plasmons", collective motions of electrons on the surface of a conductive material... Onera is studying the filtering properties of metallic nanostructures... "And we think that metallic nanostructures will help us improve its performance further
