Australian team successfully test-fires metal additively manufactured rocket engine

News
September 15, 2017

September 15, 2017

 

ProjectX engine during a test fire. The shock-cell structure in the rocket plume is visible (Courtesy NextAero)

 

A team of designers from Australia’s Amaero Engineering and Monash University have designed, manufactured and successfully test-fired a metal additively manufactured rocket engine. The ProjectX engine is built from high-strength nickel based superalloy Hasteloy X on an EOS M280 system and has a design thrust of 4kN (1000 lb).

Having successfully manufactured the world’s first AM jet engine, Amaero reportedly challenged PhD Engineering students at Monash to design an engine which made full use of the geometric complexity enabled by Additive Manufacturing. Graham Bell, Project Lead, stated, “We were able to focus on the features that boost the engine’s performance, including the nozzle geometry and the embedded cooling network. These are normally balanced against the need to consider how on earth someone is going to manufacture such a complex piece of equipment. Not so with Additive Manufacturing.”

 

The ProjectX engine is built from high-strength nickel based superalloy Hasteloy X on an EOS M280 system (Courtesy NextAero)

 

The resulting rocket engine is a complex multi-chamber aerospike design. According to Martin Jurg, an engineer with Amaero, this geometry offers some unique advantages compared to more conventional designs. “Traditional bell-shaped rockets, as seen on the Space Shuttle, work at peak efficiency at ground level. As they climb the flame spreads out reducing thrust. The aerospike design maintains its efficiency but is very hard to build using traditional technology. Using Additive Manufacturing we can create complex designs, print them, test them, tweak them, and reprint them in days instead of months.”

 

 

The PhD students involved in the project have now created a company, NextAero, to take their concept to the global aerospace industry, starting with the International Astronautical Congress in Adelaide, September 25-29, 2017. The development of the aerospike rocket was supported by Monash University, Amaero Engineering, and Woodside Energy through the Woodside Innovation Centre at Monash.

www.amaero.com.au

www.monash.edu

News
September 15, 2017

In the latest issue of Metal AM magazine

Download PDF
 

Extensive AM industry news coverage, as well as the following exclusive deep-dive articles:

  • Aluminium Additive Manufacturing: How a new generation of alloys will fuel industry growth
  • Shaping a national Additive Manufacturing ecosystem: The strategic growth of metal AM in Türkiye
  • How metal Additive Manufacturing is transforming modern hydraulic systems
  • High-performance product development in the era of computational design: a case study with nTop and NASA
  • The Additive Manufacturing of record-breaking pure copper heatsinks for high-performance computing applications
  • The Additive Manufacturing of tool steels: how non-linear modelling enables precise hardness control

Join 40,000+ other AM professionals – follow us online

Don’t miss a thing – register for our newsletter

Don't miss any new issue of Metal AM magazine, and get the latest industry news. Sign up to our twice weekly newsletter.

Register now

Looking for AM machines, metal powders or part manufacturing services?

Discover suppliers of these and more in our comprehensive advertisers’ index and buyer’s guide, available in the back of Metal AM magazine.

  • AM machines
  • Process monitoring & calibration
  • Heat treatment & sintering
  • HIP systems & services
  • Pre- & post-processing technology
  • Powders, powder production and analysis
  • Part manufacturers
  • Consulting, training & market data
Find suppliers

About Metal Additive Manufacturing magazine

Metal AM magazine, published quarterly in digital and print formats, is read by a rapidly expanding international audience.

Our audience includes component manufacturers, end-users, materials and equipment suppliers, analysts, researchers and more.

In addition to providing extensive industry news coverage, Metal AM magazine is known for exclusive, in-depth articles and technical reports.

Our focus is the entire metal AM process from design to application.

Each issue is available as an easy-to-navigate digital edition and a high-quality print publication.

Discover our magazine archive…

The free to access Metal Additive Manufacturing magazine archive offers unparalleled insight into the world of metal Additive Manufacturing from a commercial and technological perspective through:

  • Reports on visits to leading metal AM part manufacturers and industry suppliers
  • Articles on technology and application trends
  • Information on materials developments
  • Reviews of key technical presentations from the international conference circuit
  • International industry news

All past issues are available to download as free PDFs or view in your browser.

Browse the archive

Share via
Copy link
Powered by Social Snap