Looking closely for holes

To maximise the safety of an aircraft despite the presence of multiple holes, researchers at LMT-Cachan are trying to understand and control the mechanics of holes.
One needs to drill millions of holes to assemble the structures that make up an aircraft to be assembled together, which can create weak points. Several tests are therefore carried out by engineers, who study the resistance of aeronautical materials and structures, to predict how a perforated material will eventually bend. By developing models of material behaviour, these researchers are able to predict when a part will break, so they can build stronger parts and thus design safer aircraft.