Overview
Laser Additive Layer Manufacturing of tiles in various nickel superalloys has been demonstrated at TRL4. Considerable investment has been made in developing materials data for the processes of record employed on the current generation of equipment, however this equipment is for general purpose prototyping and is not capable of high volume, low cost production of flight parts.
The objective of this project was to develop a second-generation machine suitable for low cost manufacture while maintaining process equivalence to the current processes of record. This was achieved by the use of multiple lasers to address a larger build envelope and was otherwise in line with the capability requirements stated in the topic call.
The Participants first agreed the requirements for the machine with the Topic Manager. From this a functional specification was developed, embodying the essential design concepts to be realised. A test rig was constructed and operated in order to explore methods for controlling the overlap areas between laser fields. An alpha system was designed, constructed and tested in accordance with the functional specification and incorporating the learning from the test rig. A subsequent prototype machine, being a development of the alpha machine, was designed built & tested prior to installation in a representative production environment. Validation testing was performed on this machine in order to establish (1) metallurgical equivalence to the current processes of record, (2) accuracy, in particular in overlap regions, (3) system reliability and (4) cost of ownership metrics.
Funding
Results
Executive Summary:
Laser Additive Layer Manufacturing of heat shield tiles in various nickel super-alloys has been demonstrated at TRL4. Considerable investment has been made in developing materials data for the processes of record employed on the current generation of equipment, however this equipment is for general purpose prototyping and is not capable of high volume, low cost production of flight parts.
The objective of the MALT project was to develop a high volume, low cost Additive Manufacturing production equipment with a scalable concept that would be suitable for manufacturing flight approved components. The aim was to use the processes and materials validation data from the current generation of machines and increase productivity through the use of multiple lasers to address a larger build envelope. This concept could be used for to manufacture larger batches of small components or to allow large single components to be produced with an overlap of the scanner fields.
A prototype machine was developed, utilising four overlapping laser scan fields to address a build area of 400mm x 400mm. The machine was evaluated in a simulated production mode over a nine-month period. Data was collected on geometrical accuracy and materials properties throughout the period. Reliability and maintainability metrics were also tracked throughout, as was the consumption and cost of all raw materials and consumables.
The MALT project has successfully demonstrated the concept for a high productivity, scalable machine, but further work is required to develop the machine concept to provide a reliable and robust machine for production environments.
Partners
Technologies
The manufacture of three dimensional parts using many two dimensional layers stacked up to offer reduced manufacturing costs and increased flexibility.