Wing and empennage leading edge structure made of thermoplastic material with a stiffened double-shell configuration

摘要

A leading edge structure (1) is described for wing structures and empennage, comprising an outer shell (2) suitable to define a front portion of a airfoil. The outer shell is formed by a bent plate of fiber-reinforced thermoplastic resin composite material. The structure further comprises
an inner shell (3) having a convex profile that is oriented in the same direction as the profile of outer shell (2), which is formed by a bent plate of fiber-reinforced thermoplastic resin composite material and is bonded to the outer shell (2) at the longitudinal edges (3) thereof, and
at least one reinforcing element (5), transversally extending such as to connect the outer shell (2) and inner shell (3) to each other, which is formed by at least one piece of fiber-reinforced resin composite material and is fixed at opposite ends to the outer shell (2) and inner shell (3), respectively.