To: Bringbackthedraft
I wonder how the plane will take a lighting strike. Aluminum skinned planes do ok, I wonder if this non-conductive skin will tend to splinter and crack if hit with all that energy.
3 posted on
06/12/2007 6:58:48 AM PDT by
Abathar
(Proudly catching hell for posting without reading the article since 2004)
To: Abathar
I wonder how the plane will take a lighting strike. Aluminum skinned planes do ok, I wonder if this non-conductive skin will tend to splinter and crack if hit with all that energy. They've accounted for that and Boeing has a lightning lab for testing.
6 posted on
06/12/2007 7:06:32 AM PDT by
Moonman62
(The issue of whether cheap labor makes America great should have been settled by the Civil War.)
To: Abathar
Early composite airplanes like the Beech Starship had a layer of lightweight conductive material imbedded into the composite. It was similar to honeycombed aluminum foil. Lightning strikes left a hole no larger than a quarter, and a few scorch marks. Lightning strikes were easily repaired and basically harmless. I imagine the 787 will use something similar.
7 posted on
06/12/2007 7:10:18 AM PDT by
kylaka
To: Abathar
Implanted in the Carbon-Fiber is a very thin mesh layer of copper(?) that would conduct away ant electrical discharge from any contact points.
8 posted on
06/12/2007 7:10:43 AM PDT by
ExcursionGuy84
("Jesus, Your Love takes my breath away.")
To: Abathar
Since the composites are inherently non-conductive, lightning damage prevention systems are incorporated into them... i.e. They run wire in the matrix during the fabrication process. For design details you'd have to chat with the Boeing designers... Good luck... ;-)
9 posted on
06/12/2007 7:16:37 AM PDT by
Freeport
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