Guiding questions

By: Steven

1. How much fuel does a normal airplane need to fly for one hour?

A plane like Boeing 747 needs to use 4 liters of fuel for one second. Therefore it
needs to use 14400 liters of fuel for one hour. In addition to that, it uses 20 liters
of fuel for one mile. This sounds like a tremendously poor miles-per-gallon rating.
But actually 747 can carry as many as 568 people. So if airplane occupies 500
people, A 747 is transporting 500 people 1 mile using 20 liters of fuel. That
means the plane is burning 0.04 liters per person per mile. In other words, the
plane is getting 100 miles using 4 liters of fuel on per person. The typical car gets
about 25 miles per gallon, so the 747 is much better than a car carrying one
person, and compares favorably even if there are four people in the car.


2. How much energy does a solar panel (size of 1

)can make in one hour?

There are variety of solar panel. Some solar panels are 150 watt, and some are
more than that. So the size of solar panel is not that important. Therefore, if 150
watt solar panels are used, calculations are like this:




3. How many people can an Boeing 747 carry?

Boeing 747 can carry 568 people. This include all the passenger sit. The Boeing
747 is the longest commercial aircraft 250 ft 2 in (76.3 m).

4. What kind of metal needs to be used for outer part of the airplane?

For the outer part of the airplane, you can use aluminium alloy. The advantage of
aluminium alloy is that the aluminium alloy is very light. Therefore, it would be
easier for airplane to fly. In addition to that, unlike normal aluminium, aluminium
alloy is not break easily.
Other than aluminium alloy, steel can be used for outer part of airplane. The
advantage of steel is that steel is very hard material, so it is safer than the other
materials.



5. What kind of materials are needed to create the wings of the airplane?

For the wings of the airplane, they use some different materials than normal
outer part of airplane. There are 4 materials, and they are magnesium, titanium,
carbon fibers and kevlar fibers. But mormally, people use titanium and carbon
fibers more than magnesium and kevlar fibers. The reason is because
magnesium can be melt during the flight, because this metals normally burn
when hot. In addition to that, kevlar fibers are hard to work with. However, when
they success with kevlar fibers, it is better than anything.

6. What kind of materials are needed to create the engine of airplane?

For the engine of the airplane, platinum group metals are used. The reason is
because platinum group metals are not burn easily. In addition to that,
polycrystalline metals are used in engine of airplane. Other than that, nickle
super alloy are used for engine of airplane. This metal is also not burn easily.

Design brief

In this unit, the task is make a 3-dimensioned model by using Google Sketchup.
In this design brief, I will talk about what I will make for 3-dimensioned model, and why I
want to make it.
For this task, I will make 3-dimensioned model of airplane, that can occupy 500
passengers in one time, and use solar power to fly. To make an airplane like this, I have
to know the total energy used in one hour, so I can put decent amount of solar penal on
the airplane. Lets say that this airplane requires 150 watt of solar panel. Normal
airplane such as boeing 747 uses 14400 liters of fuel for one hour. Therefore, it needs
14400 watt of energy. For the solar penal,

of 150 watt solar penal create 150 watt of

energy in one hour. Therefore if there is

of 150 watt of solar penal, it creates

15000 watt of energy in one hour which is very similar to 14400. However, the airplane
is not as big as 100

. Therefore, instead of using 150 watt, I can use 300 watt of solar
penal. In total, I need 50

of 300 watt solar penal. I will put all of the penals above the
airplane. The reason is because I can gather more sunlights from there.
Also, to make airplane, I need to use special kind of metal for outer part of
airplane. I have researched about it and the article Light Aircraft Raw Materials
mentioned that I need to have aluminium alloy or steel. The reason is because
aluminium alloy is very light. Therefore, it would be easier for airplane to fly. Also, the
steel is very hard material, therefore it is very safe.
For the wings of airplane, I have to use different materials. There are total 4
materals, and they are magnesium, titanium, carbon fibers and kevlar fibers. So when I
make it, I have to consider that I have to use different materials for wings and outer part.
In total, I will use steel for outer part of my airplane, and titanium for wings of my
airplane. The reason why I chose them is because titanium is very light, but it is very
hard material, so it is safe. In addition to that, steel is very hard, so it is also very safe.
Lastly, for the engines, I researched about it and it said that I need to use
platinum group of metals. The reason is because those kind of metals are not easily
melt by heat. Therefore, engine will not going to be melt during the flight time.

Specification

1. Color is essential when designing the airplane on the Google sketchup. Color
can represent the different kind of metals, because airplane use lots of different
kind of metals.
2. The shape (or outline) of the airplane wings is essential when designing the
airplane on the Google sketchup. Titanium is going to be used.
3. The shape of engine is essential too. Also, I have to put the engine on the correct
place. Platinum group of metal will be used.
4. The shape of airplanes body part is essential too, because it is the largest part of
the airplane. Steel will be used.
5. Solar penal of the airplane is another specification, and it will place at the top of
the airplane. Therefore, it can gather the sunlights easily.
6. There will be total 50 windows on the airplane. Reinforced glass and plastic will
be used.


Bibliography

http://science.howstuffworks.com/transport/flight/modern/question192.htm
"How Much Fuel Does an International Plane Use for a Trip?" HowStuffWorks. HowStuffWorks.com, 01
Apr. 2000. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.
http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/solar.html
Bluejay, Mlchael. "Saving Electricity." Solar Calculator: How Much Do Solar Panels Cost? -by Mr.
Electricity. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.
http://exp-aircraft.com/library/heintz/material.html
Heintz, Chris. "Light Aircraft Raw Materials: Wood, Aluminum, Steel, and Composites." Light Aircraft
Raw Materials: Wood, Aluminum, Steel, and Composites. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.
http://www.iom3.org/feature/materials-through-ages-materials-aeroplane-engines
Felice, Maria. "Materials through the Ages: Materials for Aeroplane Engines | IOM3: The Global Network
for Materials, Minerals & Mining Professionals." Materials through the Ages: Materials for Aeroplane
Engines | IOM3: The Global Network for Materials, Minerals & Mining Professionals. The Institution of
Materials, Minerals and Mining, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2014