Rourkela: A research group at the National Institute of Technology Rourkela (NIT Rourkela) has developed a lightweight material that can be used in aircraft landing gear with high durability. Aircraft landing gear must be durable enough to withstand the wear and tear experienced during landing and taxiing.
Typically made of aluminium and its alloys, aircraft landing gear is designed to absorb the weight of the aircraft and endure repeated contact with the runway. Such conditions can rapidly wear down the material. While aluminium and its alloys are lightweight, their durability under high-stress conditions remains a limitation.
To address this gap, Syed Nasimul Alam, Associate Professor in the Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering at NIT Rourkela, along with his research group—including Arka Ghosh, Ashutosh Das, Pankaj Shrivastava, Nityananda Sahoo, Parth Patel, and Velaphi Msomi from the University of South Africa (UNISA)—has developed a novel nanocomposite material for use in aircraft landing gear.
The findings of this research have been published in the prestigious journal Materials Letters.
Nanocomposites are materials composed of components at the nanoscale and are more than 100,000 times thinner than a human hair.
To achieve the desired results, the NIT Rourkela research group used carbon nanotubes to enhance compressive strength and load-bearing capacity. The addition of graphite nanoplatelets further improved the nanocomposite. To ensure thermal stability, the team incorporated hexagonal boron nitride, resulting in enhanced strength, toughness, and overall performance of aluminium. For uniform dispersion of particles within the aluminium matrix, high-frequency sound waves were applied.
The mixed components were then subjected to high-pressure compaction, followed by heating and compression in an oxygen-free environment. This process resulted in a dense, strongly bonded nanocomposite suitable for aerospace applications.
Elaborating on the developed material, Syed Nasimul Alam said, “The Al-based hybrid nanocomposites developed using spark plasma sintering (SPS) show uniform dispersion of nanofillers in the Al matrix and exhibit excellent wear resistance due to a synergistic load-bearing mechanism.”
The developed process produces a three-dimensional reinforcing network, enhancing load transfer and structural stability. The formation of a thin protective layer on the surface significantly reduces wear in the composite.
With strong potential for real-world applications in defence aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), where lightweight materials and durability are essential, this nanocomposite can improve structural reliability and contribute to safer and more efficient aerospace operations.
Compared to ultra-high-strength steels, titanium alloys, and high-strength aluminium alloys currently used in aircraft landing gear, the developed nanocomposite offers approximately 40–60% greater cost-effectiveness.
The research team concluded that the material’s combination of lightweight properties and enhanced wear resistance will make landing gear more durable and safer. With benefits such as reduced maintenance costs and improved reliability, the nanocomposite demonstrates the potential for transformative impact in today’s energy-constrained world.
The team already holds a patent on powder-mixing techniques for developing nanocomposites and is in the process of filing a patent for this new technology. As a next step, they are working toward developing large-scale components using hybrid nanocomposites through the powder metallurgy (PM) route.
Aligned with the Government of India’s Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative, this innovation from NIT Rourkela could help position the country as a significant contributor to next-generation aerospace materials.
