Titanium Cheaper Than Aluminum? The Cool Parts Show All Access
General Atomics’ Steve Fournier describes how directed energy deposition makes titanium economical for aircraft structural components.
Share
Which material is the more economical choice becomes counterintuitive when additive manfuacturing is invovled, says Steve Fournier, senior manager of the Additive Design and Manufacturing Center of Excellence for General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. “I am not arguing that the raw material of aluminum is more expensive than the raw material of titanium,” he says, but the total manufacturing cost includes many other factors. Total cost determines when to adopt 3D printed titanium parts like the wing splice described in episode #72 of The Cool Parts Show. In the case of this part, both design advantages and cost savings drove the choice to adopt it in place of what had been a machined aluminum part. When the choice is between 3D printed titanium and 3D printed aluminum, Fournier says, total cost analysis tends to make titanium the cheaper metal, even though the raw material cost is higher. In this video, he makes the argument and describes the relevant factors.
Related Content
-
Possibilities From Electroplating 3D Printed Plastic Parts
Adding layers of nickel or copper to 3D printed polymer can impart desired properties such as electrical conductivity, EMI shielding, abrasion resistance and improved strength — approaching and even exceeding 3D printed metal, according to RePliForm.
-
3D Printed Cutting Tool for Large Transmission Part: The Cool Parts Show Bonus
A boring tool that was once 30 kg challenged the performance of the machining center using it. The replacement tool is 11.5 kg, and more efficient as well, thanks to generative design.
-
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.
