Additive Manufacturing Special Report - November 2023 - 14

3D Printing Parts
A more recent application of ours,
for a private space-flight application,
demonstrates the multiple ways in
which using more advanced AM is
facilitating our ability to produce the
highest-performance components
that our turbomachinery customers
demand. The task was to redesign
a specific turbopump assembly that
was originally made with a legacy
AM machine in Inconel. Leveraging
Velo3D's more advanced AM system,
we were able to consolidate parts,
change the material from Inconel
to a titanium to decrease weight,
and change the build orientation
of the structure to reduce build
time, and thus, cost. Due to our
previous experience with complex
additive builds, we didn't have a
lot of confidence that this could
be achieved without significant
trial and error, but the early prints
of the part were very successful
and went on to be machined into
actual test articles. That design,
originally deemed a high risk, is
now nearly ready for production.
Collaboration remains key
Impellers created with conventional manufacturing (left) and additive manufacturing (right).
(Image: FT Technologies)
structures to prevent warping of the
part during a build, the standard
AM strategy has been to print at a
45-degree angle. This approach can
work in static parts, but in rotating
parts at high speed this introduces
small amounts of non-uniform
material properties, which causes
excessive vibration during operation.
Lately, with the Velo3D Sapphire
printer - accessed through our
contract-manufacturer network - we
are flat-printing titanium rotating
components with exceptionally
good results. This is made possible
by its fully integrated solution that
combines software, hardware, and
unique manufacturing processes to
print highly complex geometries
and reduce or eliminate supports.
14 NOVEMBER 2023
Another example of our success
with more advanced metal powderbed
fusion came during the height
of the global pandemic. We had a
very tight deadline to get an Inconel
combustor rig to test at a time when
supply chains and manufacturing
capacity was extremely limited.
The ability to print with minimal
supports and low overhang angles
allowed us to print both the
combustor liner and its housing with
minimal design changes in a rapiddevelopment
process. We didn't
have to iterate the design to over
multiple builds to achieve a viable
part. We were able to go with our
original design, print it right the first
time, and produce the rig within
the extremely short time-window.
towards success with such cuttingedge
technology as AM. As we
work with our supply chain and
the equipment development
team, we are continuously giving
feedback on materials testing and
characterization that helps improve
the production printing process
and build parameters. Most of the
parts we are printing with advanced
AM are proprietary, so we don't
show them publicly. That said,
the enthusiastic response of our
turbomachinery customers to our
ability to use advanced AM to meet
extremely challenging design goals,
gives us the confidence to consider
3D printing to be one of the more
powerful tools in our toolbox of
engineering solutions we offer.
This article was written by Dan
Dombrowski, Manufacturing Engineer,
Space Group, FT Technologies/Kratos
Defense. For more information,
visit www.fttechnologies.com.
ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING SPECIAL REPORT

http://www.fttechnologies.com

Additive Manufacturing Special Report - November 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Additive Manufacturing Special Report - November 2023