Is Spruce Lighter than Aluminum?

[Brooke]

Stiffness to weight ratio for spruce is about the same as aluminum.  However, stiffness to weight is not always the only thing that goes into materials decisions, depending on what properties you need and what the physical configuration of and use of the part is.

In the case of aircraft, spruce and other woods are obviously decent choices since they were used so much historically, including as pointed out in the Spruce Goose, and other woods in the Mossie.

Sometimes, though, the decision included that wood was available and aluminum was in short supply (a decision that did factor into choice for Mossie and maybe for the Spruce Goose, too).

[zack1234]

I knew someone called Bruce

He was a bit overweight, he was not a colonial

[Acidrain]

smarmy Brits!

[LCADolby]

The British following elemental naming conventions, shame on them.

[Brooke]

The British following elemental naming conventions, shame on them.

Maybe they should rename oxygen, copper, iron, argon, xenon, bromine, hydrogen, mercury, phosphorus, lead, gold, silver, carbon, tin, sulfur, zinc, arsenic, antimony, cobalt, nickel, bismuth, nitrogen, chlorine, manganese, tungsten, boron, iodine, silicon, and radon, then.  (And they should add an "i" into "platinum", "molybdenum", "tantalum", and "lanthanum".)

There are many "-ium" element names and many that are not.  Davy didn't pick "aluminium", and the British not only didn't pick what he did name it ("aluminum", which fits right in with "platinum", "molybdenum", "tantalum", and "lanthanum") but they didn't even go back to what he originally named it ("alumium") and instead made up their own name to fit their preferences for this one element.

[Brooke]

Also, as Davy was British, I guess I shouldn't say that the British decided to rename it, I should say that some portion of the British establishment decided to rename it.

[pembquist]

These days aluminum is lighter on the wallet than aircraft spruce.

[HL117]

Below from KingPins reference:

As a rule of thumb, aluminum is three times heavier, but also three times stronger than wood. Steel is again three times heavier and stronger than aluminum.

[MajWoody]

The "Spruce Goose" was actually made almost entirely of birch.  


http://www.evergreenmuseum.org/the-museum/aircraft-exhibits/the-spruce-goose/

[jeep00]

Can it be carried by a swallow?

[MrRiplEy[H]]

I think a pound of aluminium is much heavyer than a pound of spruce 

[Ardy123]

Can it be carried by a swallow?

African or European?

[BaldEagl]

If I was building an aireoplane I wood use sprucium.

[HL117]

As prasied by the great designers and builders, the best material is Unatainium.


Few have been able to acquire it. 

[guncrasher]

I think a pound of aluminium is much heavyer than a pound of spruce  

I think a 2x2x6 made of wood weights the same as a 2x2x6 made of aluminum  .


which reminds me of the old, what weights more a pound of gold or a pound of cotton.  a pound of cotton weights more but an ounce of gold weights more than an ounce of cotton.


semp