Fracture mechanics approach to the design of glass aircraft windows: a case study

Edwin R. Fuller Jr.; Stephen W. Freiman; Janet B. Quinn; George D. Quinn; W. Craig Carter

doi:10.1117/12.187363

28 September 1994 Fracture mechanics approach to the design of glass aircraft windows: a case study

Edwin R. Fuller Jr., Stephen W. Freiman, Janet B. Quinn, George D. Quinn, W. Craig Carter

Proceedings Volume 2286, Window and Dome Technologies and Materials IV; (1994) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.187363
Event: SPIE's 1994 International Symposium on Optics, Imaging, and Instrumentation, 1994, San Diego, CA, United States

Abstract

Basic concepts of statistically distributed flaws and moisture-enhanced growth of cracks under stress are used in a nonparametric bootstrap analysis to assess the reliability of dual-pane glass aircraft windows. Statistical distributions of window strengths, evaluated by rapid loading in an inert environment, are analyzed as three-parameter Weibull distributions using a maximum likelihood procedure. Strength distributions for a variety of pane surface conditions are evaluated, for example, as-ground and polished surfaces, which are typical of a `protected' inner window pane, and outer pane surfaces with various types of simulated in-service `damage,' e.g., airborne dust impact, windblown sand, and cleaning/handling scratches. The crack growth parameters needed to assess the time-dependent crack growth behavior are determined at room temperature in a water environment via dynamic fatigue, or constant stressing rate tests on indented specimens. Predicted lifetimes at a 95% confidence level are ascertained for various window scenarios at a 99% survival probability via a Monte Carlo simulation using a nonparametric bootstrap procedure.

Citation Download Citation

Edwin R. Fuller Jr., Stephen W. Freiman, Janet B. Quinn, George D. Quinn, and W. Craig Carter "Fracture mechanics approach to the design of glass aircraft windows: a case study", Proc. SPIE 2286, Window and Dome Technologies and Materials IV, (28 September 1994); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.187363

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