aluminium show |The Technological Breakthrough Accelerates the Localization of Aluminium Materials for C919

As the first domestic enterprise to supply aluminium alloy materials for the C919 aircraft, as of now, Chinalco Southwest Aluminium has successively supplied various high-performance aluminium alloy materials to the C919, totalling over a thousand pieces and nearly 600 tons. It is understood that since the inception of the C919 project, Chinalco Southwest Aluminium has undertaken the research and production tasks for 13 critical aluminium alloy materials, including sheets, forgings, and extrusions. Through research and development efforts, they have successfully broken through more than 20 key technologies, including large-scale casting, precision isothermal forging, and digital simulation forming, and have achieved installation applications in critical load-bearing components such as wing beams, ribs, fuselage frames, and wall panels. The comprehensive performance of these materials has reached international advanced levels, paving a market-driven path for the independent and controllable development of the aluminium alloy industry chain for C919, from raw material research and development to certification and installation application.

In 2023, Chinalco Southwest Aluminium has focused on key areas such as technological breakthroughs, technology transfer, and quality improvement. They have continued to increase research and development investment, strengthen technological innovation, and accelerate the filling of critical gaps. They have successfully completed tasks related to national strategic materials, represented by die forgings, large-scale sheets, thick plates, pre-stretched plates, pipes, and profiles. This has resulted in a 16% year-on-year increase in production, effectively enhancing the resilience and safety of China's advanced materials industry chain and supply chain.

According to information from the aluminium show, in order to address the long-standing challenge of toughness and stress-corrosion matching in a key structural component of civil aircraft, Chinalco Southwest Aluminium used a problem-oriented and systematic thinking approach. They conducted over 1,000 sample analyses and more than 30 process trials. Ultimately, through phased evaluations, they achieved a significant step towards 100% domestic production of aluminium materials for civil aircraft. Currently, Chinalco Southwest Aluminium has obtained certifications for 10 materials, including breaking the monopoly of foreign sole qualified suppliers in 5 material categories, ensuring the safety and controllability of the civil aviation industry supply chain.