Materials, Properties and Design

· Pratt & Whitney also uses a titanium alloy for the fan blades of its PW4084 engine.
· These blades are formed by super-plastic deformation of titanium at high temperatures. The shaped sections are then diffusion bonded to give a hollow blade of wide chord.
· The hollow blades reduce weight and improve the section stiffness for a given aerodynamic design.
· A titanium matrix - SiC fiber composite is a possible next step.

From: Aviation Week and Space Technology, August 22 (1994)