Tungsten Alloy Counterweight in Helicopter

Tungsten alloy counterweight is used in a wide range of different applications, including helicopter. Here, in this article, we take a closer look at two cases of its application in different helicopters.

Vibration Dampening in Chinook Helicopters with Tungsten Alloy

The Chinook helicopter was introduced over 50 years ago and it has undergone numerous modifications which have impacted its specifications and performance characteristics including size, weight, payload, engine equipment, etc. However, in general terms the Chinook helicopter has an empty weight of 24,578 lb and a maximum takeoff weight of 50,000 lb. Its fuselage is just under 99 feet in length (with rotors), with a width of just over 12 feet, and a height of just under 19 feet. The diameter of the helicopter's rotors is 60 feet. To power such an enormous helicopter the Chinook features two Honeywell T55-GA-714A turboshaft engines with FADEC. Its two engines produce a continuous power of 3,000 shp with a maximum power of 3,750 shp each. In order to reduce the significant vibrations resultant from the forces generated by the aircraft, these helicopters employ Tungsten Alloy counterweight underneath the pilot and co-pilot seats to absorb and dissipate oscillations. Being able to fit a denser material (approximately 1.5 times denser than lead) into a smaller volume of space is essential to this application.

Rotor Balancing in Black Hawk Helicopters with Tungsten Alloy

Introduced approximately 40 years ago, the Black Hawk helicopter has also experienced many design changes. Generally, the Black Hawk helicopter has an empty weight of 10,624 lb and a maximum takeoff weight of 23,500 lb. The Black Hawk's fuselage is just over 50 feet in length and just under 8 feet wide, with a height of just under 17 feet. Its main rotor is 53 feet and 8 in diameter. The Black Hawk's powerplant features two General Electric T700-GE-701C turboshaft, 1,890 hp (1,410 kW) each. The main rotor has a rotational speed of 258 RPM. To help keep these extremely large rotors rotating smoothly at up to 258 RPM, the four main rotors in the Sikorsky Black Hawk has four tungsten alloy counterweights in each blade for static dynamic balancing purposes. Again, the ability to fit the extremely dense tungsten alloy (approximately 50% denser than lead) into a smaller volume of space is essential to keeping these rotors revolving in balance.

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