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Fatigue is one important failure mode that guides the design and engineering of aircraft structure. As we have discussed previously aircraft are often manufactured using rivets and fasteners, which require drilling many holes in the structure during assembly. The holes act as stress concentrations, which tend to be locations where fatigue cracks are found. Compressive…
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Hill Engineering recently moved into a new facility in Rancho Cordova, CA. The new facility features a combination of laboratory, research and development, and office space; all of which are important as we work tenaciously to meet the needs of our current projects, while at the same time keeping an eye towards innovation and new…
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Aircraft undergo complex loading during their operation and lifecycle. For example, take off, landing, turbulence, and flight/ground maneuvers are all instances where significant loading occurs. The cyclic loading and unloading activates a failure mechanism called fatigue, which is most prevalent at the highest stressed regions. Many aircraft are assembled using riveted construction, whereby small holes…
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Fracture and fatigue are important material performance issues that Hill Engineering examines on a regular basis. Hill Engineering recently contributed to a publication titled “Investigating and interpreting failure analysis of high strength nuts made from nickel-base superalloy.” The publication includes a detailed review of work performed to understand the failure of these fracture critical nuts.…
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2016 was an exciting year at Hill Engineering. We accomplished so much and we wanted to take a moment to recognize some of the highlights. Early in the year, we were in the middle of Hill Engineering’s largest ever facilities planning/construction project. We had just selected our new office location and needed to plan and…
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The Hill Engineering employees took a quick break from all the residual stress analysis to partake in a few fall-themed festivities this season. We recognize that enjoying quality time together is an important way to strengthen our resolve as a team. What better way to do that than through everybody’s favorite activities: pumpkin carving and…
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We are excited to announce that Hill Engineering was recently awarded ISO17025:2005 accreditation! ISO/IEC 17025 General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories is the primary ISO standard used by testing and calibration laboratories. Hill Engineering was accredited by the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA). Compliance with the ISO/IEC 17025:2005 standard provides…
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In a previous blog post we discussed, in general, issues related to residual stress in welding. In this post, we’ll follow up with a more detailed look at a specific welding application – linear friction welding of titanium alloys. Titanium alloys are widely used in aerospace applications for their high strength to weight ratio, good…
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Hill Engineering is presenting about fatigue analysis methods for cold expanded aircraft fastener holes at the upcoming 2016 Aircraft Structural Integrity Program (ASIP) Conference in San Antonio, TX. Cold hole expansion is a method commonly used to induce compressive residual stress around the perimeter of fastener holes, which are common in aircraft structure. The compressive…
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Senior Design or Capstone Projects are a common culmination to an engineering degree. The general consensus is that the projects are beneficial for the students by providing a helpful learning experience and portfolio boost. Participation in a Senior Design Project can also be beneficial to the company sponsoring it. The course provides the opportunity to…
