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A collaborative research effort between scientists and engineers from the Air Force Research Laboratory&s Materials and Manufacturing Directorate and The Boeing Company&s Military Transport Aircraft and Phantom Works Divisions has led to the technological development of pre-coated fasteners. Pre-coated fasteners provide superior long-term corrosion protection, improved fatigue life, and improved fastener installations while eliminating the need for environmentally hazardous sealants. The incorporation of pre-coated fasteners on the C- 17A has revolutionized the aerospace industry&s approach to aircraft assembly by improving quality and streamlining the assembly process while providing significant labor cost savings.

Every aircraft produced today contains hundreds of thousands of fastened joints. These joints and the fasteners that connect them are perhaps the most common source of failure in aircraft structure. Therefore, it is imperative that advancements in fastener materials and designs be given the utmost consideration and attention to achieve increased joint performance and integrity. This paper presents the results of development efforts relating to an advanced processing technique and its effect upon selected mechanical properties of certain metallic alloy materials that are deemed appropriate or important for potential fastener applications.