Fatigue cracking caused by the axial misalignment of an area of counter‑boring within the inner diameter of a stub pipe appears to be the cause of an engine failure on a Qantas A380 jet flying from Singapore to Sydney, Australia Nov. 4.
That’s the observation of a preliminary investigation by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.
The misalignment produced a localized thinning of the pipe wall on one side, leading to a fatigue crack that spilled oil into a combustion chamber of the jet engine. That caused an explosion that splintered a turbine disc which subsequently damaged hte plane’s left wing and fuselage.
Qantas is still testing other Trent engines to see if they also have the defect. The fatigue cracks were discovered in testing at a Rolls-Royce facility in Derby, United Kingdom.
There were no reported injuries to the crew or passengers on the aircraft, which was able to land safely. There were reports of minor injuries to two persons on Batam Island, Indonesia.
The investigation is continuing.
Photo shows detail of combustion chamber oil pipe with misaligned counter-bore.
Inspired by the hooks a parasitic worm uses to penetrate its host's intestines, the Karp Lab has invented a flexible adhesive patch covered with microneedles that adheres well to wet, soft tissues, but doesn't cause damage when removed.
Engineers at the University of California, San Diego are designing a robotic arm that takes inspiration from the loose, flexible, yet very strong structure of the armored plates on a seahorse's tail.
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A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
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