Evaluation of Fretting Wear of Contact Surfaces of Composite Material-Aircraft Alloy in Nominally Stationary Joints of Aircraft Structures

The article examines and analyzes the use of composite materials, such as carbon fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) and glass fiber-reinforced plastic (GFRP), in new-generation aircraft. Comparative studies were conducted on these composite materials alongside aviation alloys based on aluminum, titanium, and steel. It was determined that contact interfaces in nominally stationary joints suffer significant damage due to vibrational loads—stemming from aircraft engines and normal operations—a phenomenon classified as fretting corrosion. The study found that Al-CFRP/GFRP contact leads to the catastrophic degradation of friction surfaces caused by the formation of hard Al2O3 oxides. Ti-CFRP/GFRP contact is the most common configuration in new-generation aircraft; notably, the wear resistance of the composite materials is 6–20 times higher than that of the titanium alloy, owing to the inherent properties of titanium and its susceptibility to wear. Furthermore, the article analyzes surface processing and protection methods for titanium components aimed at enhancing the durability and wear resistance of these contact pairs.