NASA has announced their success in producing an aluminum rocket engine nozzle marking a significant step toward accessible and affordable space travel.
NASA has announced their success in producing an aluminum rocket engine nozzle using their ground-breaking Reactive Additive Manufacturing for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (RAMFIRE) technology, marking a significant step toward accessible and affordable space travel. This technological advance highlights a sustainable approach to space activities and also represents a major cost decrease.
Additive Manufacturing (AM), or 3D printing, has been a game-changer in the manufacturing industry. Unlike traditional methods, which generate excess waste, 3D printing creates precise, custom-built components from the ground up, resulting in minimal waste.
This process is not only rapid but also highly cost-effective and efficient. While initially limited to modeling and prototyping, recent years have seen its expansion into the aerospace sector.
The collaboration between NASA and Elementum 3D, a leading AM company, has yielded a weldable type of aluminum named A6061-RAM2, capable of withstanding the intense heat of rocket engines.
This achievement is a significant milestone, given that traditional manufacturing methods would necessitate the assembly of thousands of individual parts for a rocket nozzle. The RAMFIRE process simplifies this by producing the aluminum components as a single piece, thereby reducing the need for numerous bonds and drastically cutting down on manufacturing time.
Additionally, these nozzles are engineered with small internal channels that effectively dissipate heat, preventing any risk of melting. The RAMFIRE 3D printer, developed in collaboration with RPM Innovations, employs Directed Energy Deposition (DED) technology, utilizing layers of powdered alloy fused by lasers. When combined with Elementum 3D’s specialized aluminum powder, the result is a process known as laser powder-directed energy deposition (LP-DED).
In an extensive round of hot-fire tests at the Marshall Space Flight Center’s East Test Area, the RAMFIRE nozzles proved their mettle, utilizing liquid oxygen (LOX) and liquid hydrogen (LH2), as well as LOX and liquid methane fuel configurations, at pressures surpassing 5690 kilopascals (825 psi) – levels even higher than those expected during launches.
The nozzles, remarkably, completed 22 start tests and operated for nearly 10 minutes, affirming their capacity to withstand the most challenging deep-space conditions.
NASA’s foray into additive manufacturing isn’t confined to rocket nozzles alone. Earlier this year, Relativity Space test-launched their Terran 1 rocket, the first entirely composed of 3D-printed parts.
This included engines made of a cutting-edge alloy called Glenn Research Copper (GRCop), additively manufactured at NASA’s Glenn Research Center. These engines demonstrated the ability to endure temperatures reaching up to 3,315 °C (6,000 °F), a remarkable 40% higher than traditional copper alloys.
With an eye on the ambitious Moon to Mars program, encompassing Project Artemis and lunar infrastructure development, NASA’s pursuit of advanced manufacturing techniques is pivotal.
By crafting lightweight yet robust rocket components capable of withstanding extreme conditions, NASA is accelerating progress towards lunar settlements and eventual human missions to Mars. This transformative approach is poised to redefine the future of space exploration.