Full scale fatigue test of advanced metallic semi wing demonstrator

A full-scale fatigue test is acknowledged as an effective way that can be employed to account the mechanical behavior of an airframe structure, in which real structures with a realistic spectrum simulation allow the proper interaction of all structural components. The development of a metallic advanced concept was done under the dimensions and functionalities of a typical regional aircraft wing, by Embraer R&D department. The primary structures were selected with the objective to prove the concept as well as to understand the behavior of the components during the real flight conditions test simulation. Mainly, the new technologies included in this demonstrator were: Friction Stir Welding (FSW), Structural Bonding and Fiber Metal Laminate (FML). The FSW joining process was applied in advanced concepts of wing spar and upper wing cover. Whilst, FML and Metal Bonding were applied in the lower wing cover. This study presents the results from the fatigue test demonstrator that had been subjected to a complex wing loading spectrum for a test period corresponding to two lifetimes of a typical regional aircraft. For the crack propagation phase, a constant amplitude loading was applied and many artificial damages were introduced at lower wing cover and the crack propagation was monitored during the test progress, such that many crack growth scenarios could be evaluated in depth.