Gas turbine engine nose cone

A turbofan gas turbine engine comprising a fan assembly, an engine core including a compressor section, a combustor and a turbine section in serial flow communication, at least one low pressure compressor of the compressor section and at least one low pressure turbine of the turbine section being mounted to a common engine low pressure shaft, the fan assembly including a plurality of fan blades substantially radially extending from a fan disk mounted to the engine low pressure shaft and a nose cone mounted to the fan disk for rotation therewith, the nose cone having a central tip, an outer perimeter and a substantially conical outer wall extending therebetween which encloses a cavity therewithin, the outer wall including an inner substrate layer facing the cavity and an outer layer which overlies and at least partially encloses the inner substrate layer, the outer layer being composed entirely of a nanocrystalline metal forming an outer surface of the nose cone.

A method of manufacturing a nose cone for a gas turbine engine, the method comprising the steps of:

• providing an outer wall of the nose cone composed of an inner substrate layer formed of a first material;
• and
• applying a nanocrystalline metal coating over at least a portion of the inner substrate layer of the outer wall of the nose cone, the nanocrystalline metal coating forming an outer surface of the nose cone.