Video: Additive Manufacturing in Extreme Application
NASA’s test of a rocket engine fuel injector made through selective laser melting illustrates an additively produced part’s capacity to perform at high temperature and pressure.
This video shows NASA’s test of a rocket engine fuel injector made through selective laser melting, an additive manufacturing process. The part in this test withstood 1,400 pounds per square inch of pressure at nearly 6,000°F, and performed "flawlessly," according to NASA. Because of additive manufacturing’s freedom to produce complex geometries, the injector was made in just two pieces, where a previous injector design was an assembly consisting of 115 pieces. The additively produced injector in this test was made by Directed Manufacturing, a Texas additive manufacturing specialist we’ve written about.
Related Content
-
Reusable LOX/Kerosene Engine Completes First Successful Full-System Test Flight
Galactic Energy Space Technology announced the first successful full-system test flight of its Welkin 50-ton reusable LOX/kerosene engine. To date, this is the highest thrust LOX/kerosene engine in the Chinese commercial aerospace playing field which has officially entered the engineering and manufacturing phase.
-
3D Printed NASA Thrust Chamber Assembly Combines Two Metal Processes: The Cool Parts Show #71
Laser powder bed fusion and directed energy deposition combine for an integrated multimetal rocket propulsion system that will save cost and time for NASA. The Cool Parts Show visits NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.
-
8 Transformations 3D Printing Is Making Possible
Additive manufacturing changes every space it touches; progress can be tracked by looking for moments of transformation. Here are 8 places where 3D printing is enabling transformative change.