#2 – Prof. Paul Weaver on shape, stiffness and smart aerospace structures

This episode features Prof. Paul Weaver, who holds a Bernal Chair in Composite Structures at the University of Limerick in Ireland, and is the Professor in Lightweight Structures at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom. Lightweight design plays a crucial role in the aerospace industry, and Paul has worked on some fascinating concepts for more efficient aircraft structures. Paul's research has influenced analysis procedures and product design at NASA, Airbus, GKN Aerospace and Augusta Westland Helicopters, and in this episode we cover some of his past accomplishments and his vision for the future.

Central to this vision is artificial metamorphosis, which is a term that Paul uses to describe structures that reconfigure, adapt and optimise on the fly to changes in the operating environment. Although Paul thinks that this vision of engineering structures is still 50 years into the future, he is well known for his work on a related technology: shape-morphing. The simplest example of a morphing structure is a leading edge slat which is used on all commercial aircraft today to prevent stall at take off and landing. Paul on the other hand envisions morphing structures that are more integral, that is without joints and that do not rely on heavy actuators to function. Apart from morphing structures Paul and I discuss his teenage dreams of becoming a material scientist, his work with Mike Ashby at Cambridge University on material and shape factors, which are now being used the world-over to design efficient structures, and much, much more.

If you want to learn more about the topics discussed in this episode, then you can find show notes with links to more in-depth material on the aerospace engineering blog. The Aerospace Engineering Blog Facebook site is the best place to get in touch with me if you have suggestions for the podcast or want to leave comments about this episode. Thanks a lot for listening!