October 3 2005

I have just recently realized that I have quite a loyal following of my undeniably sparse Corrosion Shenanigans, and as my title suggests I really should be having some sort of corrosion every "week".
I am sorry I have misled you in the past.... but I promise to show you all of my notable findings, no matter how monotonous to me.....

I suppose I never really thought the sights of such dirty rotten parts would turn anyone on as much as me.
I started the CORROSION OF THE WEEK as sort of a joke.... But, like my Mama warned me, it seems the world really is a small place and it's true that the internet brings out ALL the freaks and geeks......

- So with no further ado, here, my beloved airplane nerds, is your *AIRPLANE CORROSION OF THE WEEK*!!!!!!

Today I have Showcased a blown-out fitting in the Main Landing Gear wheel well of a Boeing 727.



All that was visible to a trained eye after the area was cleaned of all the greasy muddy muck that sprays around being open to the elements during takeoff and landing, was a small puff of fine white dust at the corner of this fitting.



The decision was made to remove the part for a better look and VOILA! The corrosion was much worse than anticipated.
The part was "kicked to the airport curb" and a new one was ordered ASAP from Boeing.com at the usual insane price that is so high for one little measly part you would never believe it even if I told you.
Just think Hundreds.
Then think at least 6 hours labour to install....

Maybe THAT'S why it all is such an unexpected and unexplained turn on for me.... Big Ticket Damage Caused By Average Every Day Environmental Wear and Tear....

Makes you wonder how much of that is false inflation due to the "Rich Bitch Factor"
- you know, like the obvious difference in parts and labour costs between, say, a Pontiac and a Porsche.......

September 23

Hamish - This ones for you....
(My oh My.....You are in for a treat!)

This has to be one of the most extensively rotted out pieces of Aircraft Structure I have witnessed in the past 9 years of my aviation induced delirium.....



A Dirty specimen.... sludgy-slime and ancient toilet water sloshing up and down the Stringer channels, marinating deep inside the rivet holes, leaching into the grains of the once light but strong aluminum extrusion.
Exfoliating from the inside out underneath rows of hot avionics equipment and air conditioning ducts this section was left dark and dank, sweating and freezing, lightly stinking of an acidic ammonia-ish smell that can only be aluminum corrosion.



My pupils dilate, my heart races.....
A blowout of such epic proportions it could make an inspector weak at the knees....



- Lying in a soft bed of white dust....
it's large gaping hole, flakes of dissolution like petals of a flower...

- A True Blowout - as beautiful as it is frightening.



The only thing left to do is warm up the rivet guns and drill her out. A complete stringer replacement is the only remedy to this sick bit of festering non-ferrous metal.

You see, it's not "Rust" my friends... Rust Never Sleeps.......




.....And neither does Aluminum Exfoliation Corrosion.

July 19th

Well, Well, Well! This Corrosion is a whopper... Important to find, not so exciting to have to pay for.
This piece demonstrates the advanced stage of corrosion in the lower main door frame of an Aft Baggage Pit Door...
- It is decayed beyond repair... Requires full replacement of the 10 Ft. piece... The Price Tag?... A little over $10,000 CDN. - just for the part -

Holy shit is right.

This specific case was probably due to water, dirt, slime etc. that has been sitting atop the aluminum since this particular aircraft was built in the early 1970's. The elements and time certainly will take its toll... Hence there was the invention of the Aging Aircraft Corrosion Prevention and Control Program, which makes up a huge part of our inspections.
This photo shows Kirk, my favorite Metrosexual, as well as just where this corrosion occurred and just how large the scale of this overhaul actually is.... Early estimates are at least 100 hours of hard sweaty labour.
Lovely!

*THE GREAT CANADIAN CORROSION EXPERIMENT UPDATE!* - Week 1 -

- So far it's too early to see any real obvious changes, but I have noticed a bit of discoloration on the scratched off clad pieces... Particularity in the urine soaked piece...........
stay tuned for further updates!!!

Introducing * THE GREAT CANADIAN CORROSION EXPERIMENT *

I am pleased to present the newest installment on Corrosion of the Week..... The Great Canadian Corrosion Experiment!!!!
A little while back I received a comment on *Airplane Corrosion Of The Week* from Herge wondering just how long it would take for a piece of aircraft aluminum to corrode.
I gave some answer stating that corrosion only happens when conditions are right, there is an "accelerant" i.e. acidic substances like cola or urine, and the metal is no longer being protected by a corrosion resistant coating like Cladding, Alodine or paint. Shortly after that I got the bright idea that I would try and recreate a corrosion situation in a sort of "controlled experiment"..... And here we are today!

As you can see by this photo I have built a board with 9 pieces of a commonly used piece of 2024-T3 (copper additive for strength) Aluminum.
- The first row is 3 pieces of clad aluminum.... Cladding is a simple corrosion resistant technique using a thin layer of pure aluminum (because with no additive like copper or zinc, aluminum will actually take forever to corrode -i.e. pop cans are pure aluminum)
- The second row is 3 pieces with the clad scratched off, the most likely to corrode as the all protective coatings have been removed.....
- The third row has the aluminum with a hole drilled thru and a steel screw without a protective aluminum washer between it and the metal. This is to observe the effects of the "accelerant substances" as well as the effects of dissimilar metals called Galvanic Corrosion


- As you can see in the above photo I have introduced the 3 major corrosion causes that are commonly spilled in passenger aircraft:
- Cola
- Coffee
- Urine
The objective is to see how long it will take for each of these acidic substances will take to break down the aluminum pieces, and which one will actually corrode first....
I will be updating every week until we see any sign of metal decomposition!!!!!
Anyone care to take an educated guess which will show signs of corrosion first????

June 27th 2005

What better way to start the fresh new work week after a holiday than with some nice juicy corrosion!!!!! I can almost taste the sulfury metallic dust now....

This lovely specimen was spotted on the underside of the Cabin floor, a typical haven for all sorts of moisture-induced nasties which are extremely common in passenger aircraft and also happen to be the worst enemy to Aluminum structure....
That's right kids, like I've mentioned Time and Time again... Coffee, Cola, Urine and Vomit - The Silent Airplane Killers -
The tragic truth is that most ignorant passengers spray these plane-poisons around without a care in the world..... Pissing into the wind and blowing chunks at will after drunkenly tipping their 15th Rum and Coke down the sidewall.

The safety of each and every flight depends on your diligence....
Please urinate sitting down and always vomit into a waterproof receptacle....And maybe consider a nice Gin and Tonic instead of an Aluminum acid bath libation. Please Think before you Drink.  

June 6th, 2005

I was inspired to add in a different sort of corrosion this week as I have been linked by Aviatrix from Cockpit Conversations in her most recent Post about Corrosion. Amazingly enough, she happens to be a pilot that is actually interested in the maintenance end of her aircraft.... 'Tis a beautiful quality indeed!

Anyhow, back to my captivating looking bit of metal breakdown......
This is actually a perfect example of Magnesium corrosion at an attach point of a flap actuator mechanism on a Boeing 727.
Magnesium is used quite a lot in the thick casted parts and has a telltale dark colored pitting style of corrosion that is hard to realize it's full extent until it gets cleaned properly. I have actually seen magnesium pit all the way through and still keep its strength and not crack. This damage seen above was probably a combination of dissimilar metals and dirt, water,and/or salt getting underneath the washer of the attaching Bolt.

- An amusing little tidbit about rotted out magnesium castings such as this. - When labeled NFG, originally they will find their final resting place in the scrap metal bin... But, more times than not, are rescued and taken camping, thrown in a blazing fire that will end up eventually blinding the fellow campers as typically magnesium burns brighter than the sun. Fun and Games for Everyone!

Alas! - Its better to burn out than to rot away.....

 

May 30th 2005

This is a stunning sample of the types of Corrosion you can find in a belly baggage pit. I have seen more than a lifetimes worth this week alone. Corrosion generally will run rampant in the aircraft belly because typically this is where all things wet and grungy collect. Speaking of wet and grungy - who wants to hear a gross little fact about airplanes !?!?!?! (O.K. I knew you would)
.....So here goes;
We all know that an aircraft is a completely sealed cylindrical object that generally is used to haul hundreds of people in recycled air, around the globe for hours at a time, right?. As we also know people are, shall we say, self-lubricating body fluid excreting sweaty skin blobs.... So what happens to all the sneezes, bad breath, and dry skin flakes that are expelled from each and every person in that aircraft?....
Well, you see, here's the thing - it actually makes a film on the inside walls of the cabin and slides down ever so slippery to under the belly baggage pit where it sits sloshing around slowly rotting out the structure. Then that's where I come in like the hero I am and grind, cut and replace all that snot-induced rot, so that you can have your safe hot-breathy-aired flight over the Atlantic.

....Yes, you are welcome.