JAXA: H3 rocket manufacturing cost reduction: metal 3D printing
-The key is to use a 3D printer-
2020.10.19
JAXA:
“H3 rocket” being developed by JAXA as the next domestically produced main rocket
H3 rocket:
Various new technologies are adopted in LE-9.
Of these, we are paying particular attention to additive manufacturing (3D printing).
Additive Manufacturing: (3D Printing)
Additive manufacturing generally suffers from low productivity.
Moreover, the cost aspect tends to be a bottleneck for adoption.
On the other hand, JAXA sees that “additive manufacturing is the key to cost reduction in LE-9 development.”
Apply additive manufacturing to parts production.
High reliability and low cost:
Compared to the current engine LE-7A, the LE-9 has reduced the number of component parts by about 20%.
The LE-9 was developed with the concept of achieving both high reliability and low cost.
One of the new technologies applied to achieve this is additive manufacturing.
Benefits of additive manufacturing:
Additive manufacturing for modeling 3D models
High degree of freedom in shape,
Even complicated shapes can be modeled.
As a result, the shape of the part can be optimized.
It is possible to devise ways such as integrating multiple parts, and a significant weight reduction can be expected.
Two types of additive manufacturing:
This time, two types of additive manufacturing will be applied to LE-9.
Both are made of metal.
One is: powder bed fusion bonding method
Laser scan the surface of a flat powdered material,
Melt only the cross-sectional shape part,
The powder is added on it and the same process is repeated.
“Powder bed melting bond” (SLM: also known as Selective Laser Melting)
The other is: Directed energy deposition method
Irradiate the laser
Spray a metal powder film on the part where the metal is melted
“Directed energy deposition” (LMD: also called Laser Metal Deposition)
The latter is a method similar to overlay welding.
Nikkei Cross Tech (xTECH)
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LE-9 engine:
An engine system different from the LE-7A engine used in the H-IIA rocket. An expander bleed cycle was adopted.
As a result, it gained 1.4 times the thrust of the LE-7A engine.
Succeeded in achieving both high safety and low cost by reducing the number of main parts by 20%.
We also manufacture fuel injection equipment and engine piping with a 3D printer.
A large electric valve was used for the engine system.
Large rocket engine:
By accumulating the world’s first attempts, we have succeeded in reducing the number of manufacturing days and the number of tests.
Business Insider Japan