Identification of Aging Aircraft Electrical Wiring

1
Identification of Aging Aircraft Electrical Wiring

• Group Members
• David Bryant
• Yuto Shinagawa
• Shaun Steinbarger

Sponsors Dr. R. O. Stearman Marcus Kruger
BSS Engineering Inc.
2
Overview

• Background Information
• Project Objectives
• Experimental Setup
• Problems Encountered
• Laboratory Aging Results
• Age Analysis Results
• Recommendations
• Conclusion

3
Background Information

• Navy and Air Force discover problem in the 1980s
• Commercial aviation industry becomes concerned
• Swiss Air 111 and TWA 800
• Substantial number of planes contain faulty
  wiring
• Aircraft industry is seeking a method to discern
  age of aircraft wire

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Triboelectric Effect

• Definition creation of charge imbalance due to
  contact separation resulting in unwanted
  interference

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Triboelectric Effect

• Solution to the problem relate triboelectric
  effect to the age of a wire in hopes of
  identifying faulty wiring

6
Project Objectives

• Find standards in wire aging techniques
• Design laboratory experiments
• Successfully simulate wire aging
• Monitor the triboelectric response of nominal and
  aged wires

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Distribution of Tasks
Project Manager Shaun Steinbarger
Senior Engineer David Bryant
Senior Engineer Yuto Shinagawa

Wire Aging Chief Engineers David Bryant Shaun
Steinbarger 1. Logistics 2. Design 3.
Implementation
Age Analysis Chief Engineer Yuto Shinagawa 1.
Test Design 2. Test Implementation 3. Data
Analysis
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Alpha Wire 1632

• Material rubber
• 20 Gage
• 1.02 mm insulation thickness
• 3.18 mm diameter
• Single Conductor
• Temperature Range
• -30C 90C
• Cost
• Twisted pair

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Laboratory Aging

• CE Environmental Chambers
• Heat Test
• Humidity Test
• Chemical Solution Test
• Saltwater
• Jet-A fuel with Prist additive
• 15 specimens per test 4 ft/specimen
• Specimen removed every 3½ days

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Heat Humidity Tests

• Humidity 70
• Temperature 75F

• Temperature 120F

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Chemical Solution Test

• Salt Water
• Salinity 8 fl. oz./gallon
• Jet-A Fuel
• Approved 5 gallon container
• Ambient temperature - 100F

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Age Analysis I
Data Acquisition System
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Age Analysis II
Signal Analyzer
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Age Analysis III
Wire Circuit (closed)
Electromagnetic Shaker
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Problems Encountered Laboratory Aging

• Heat Test
• Desired Temperature 170F
• Heat Lamp
• Testing terminated early

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Problems Encountered II Age Analysis

• Software Packages
• Hewlett Packard 35660A
• Ideas
• LabView
• HP3566A/67A
• Three Separate Test Runs
• Closed Loop Test
• Electromagnetic
• Interference (EMF)
• Inconsistent results

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Results I Laboratory Aging

• Humidity/Heat aging tests
• No visual/physical results
• Jet-A
• Expanded in diameter
• and length
• Slippery copper wire
• Salt H2O
• Corrosion of copper

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Results II- Age Analysis

• No trends in data
• Inconsistent
• results

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Project Objectives

• Find standards in wire aging techniques
• Design laboratory experiments
• Successfully simulate wire aging
• Monitor the triboelectric response of nominal and
  aged wires

• Success

• Success

• Success

• Unsuccessful

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Recommendations I

• Laboratory Aging
• Reconfigure Heat Test
• Locate an environmental chamber capable of 170 F
• Expose wire to extreme cycles in temperature
• Discontinue Humidity Test
• Expose specimens to combinations of tests
• Cycle procedure
• 1 week Jet-A
• 1 week Salt H2O
• 1 week Heat

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Recommendations II

• Age Analysis
• Become proficient with Ideas
• Eliminate all outside variables
• Develop more consistent testing procedures

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Conclusions

• Inconsistent results
• Data does not provide any definitive trends
  between age and triboelectric response
• Current experimental setup does not guarantee
  elimination of external disturbances
• Change in scope of project

• Find a relationship between the aged state
• of a wire and its triboelectric response

• Design and evaluate experimental procedures
• so future groups may base their continuing
• research upon them

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Any Questions ???