www.3ders.org

Oct 10, 2017 | By Benedict

The ASRC (Arctic Slope Regional Corporation) Federal Technical Services division, part of the ASRC Alaska Native Corporation, has test-fired a 3D printed subscale propellant injector that could be used on United Launch Alliance’s replacement for the Russian-built RD-180 rocket engine.

ASRC tests its new 3D printed propellant injector

(Image: ASRC)

With the Russian-made RD-180 rocket engine being phased out of U.S. rockets due to political tensions between D.C. and Moscow, the development of its replacement has become one of the most riveting storylines of contemporary space engineering.

At present, Blue Origin—the Washington-headquartered aerospace company owned by Amazon’s Jeff Bezos—is set to replace the RD-180 with its BE-4, a rocket engine with 3D printed components. But with the BE-4 not expected to be operational for a couple of years, the process is still fairly up in the air.

Should the BE-4 fail to meet expected standards, aerospace companies Dynetics and Aerojet Rocketdyne will be waiting in the wings to offer their rival oxygen-rich staged combustion cycle (ORSC) engine to United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Boeing that provides spacecraft launch systems to the U.S. government.

For the ASRC’s Federal Technical Services division, the identity of the eventual RD-180 successor doesn’t really matter, because a new 3D printed subscale propellant injector—which was this year test-fired in Washington—would purportedly be compatible with Blue Origin’s BE-4, Aerojet Rocketdyne’s AR-1, or whatever engine ends up getting the nod.

The full-power testing on the additively manufactured part was completed back in April, with engineers concluding that the functional component could be built in a quarter of the time it would take using other fabrication techniques.

Blue Origin's BE-4 remains the frontrunner to replace the Russian-made RD-180

“We reduced production time for this injector to eight days, which would have been over a month using traditional machining,” said Joseph Sims, ASRC Federal Technical Services project manager, in an interview with SpaceNews. “We also reduced parts count from five parts to a single part.”

The 3D printed propellant injector will be used in ASRC’s subscale oxygen-rich preburner (ORPB), commissioned by the U.S. Air Force in 2016 as part of a $3.69 million deal. Requirements for the preburner included the ability to continuously dilute fuel in an engine’s combustion chamber.

The ORPB will purportedly be able to support whichever rocket engine gets chosen to replace the RD-180.

According to Sims, the ORPB and its 3D printed propellant injector will be ready when it is needed, with the ASRC schedule “structured to provide a pre-burner design that could be inserted into the ORSC engine development program in 2019.”

Results from the test-firing session will be used to finalize the subscale preburner design, which will be subjected to testing later in 2017.

Learn more about how aerospace companies are using 3D printing to create an improved replacement for the RD-180:

• Blue Origin incorporates 3D printed housing, turbine, nozzles, rotors into BE-4 rocket engine
• Aerojet Rocketdyne using 3D printing to replace Russian RD-180, to deliver affordable AR-1 rocket engine by 2019
• US Air Force invests $34.6M in 3D printed engine development through BAA Awards

 

 

Posted in 3D Printing Application

 

 

Maybe you also like:

• T-Bone Cape motion control board launches on Indiegogo
• New extruder could lower costs of 3D printing cellular structures for drug testing
• New Ninja Printer Plate for consumer 3D printing
• mUVe3D releases improved Marlin firmware for all 3D printers
• Zecotek plans HD 3D display for 3D printers
• Add a smart LCD controller to your Robo3D printer
• Maker Kase: a handy cabinet for 3D printers
• Heated bed for ABS printing with the Printrbot Simple XL
• Next gen all metal 3D printer extruder from Micron
• Pico all-metal hotend 100% funded in 48 hours, B3 announces Stretch Goal
• Create it REAL announces first 3D printing Real Time Processor
• A larger and more powerful 3D printer extruder on Kickstarter

   

Leave a comment:

Your Name: