Aerojet Rocketdyne has invested significant time and resources in developing 3D printing / additive manufacturing applications over the past two decades to meet the stringent requirements of rocket engine and defense system applications. According to 3D Scientific Valley market research, in recent years, Aerojet Rocketdyne has achieved a number of successes in developing this technology, with a wide range of products, including component prototypes, and engines and propulsion systems made entirely of 3D printing for ignition tests.
Aerojet Rocketdyne's traditional and new product development work has benefited from 3D printing technology, such as the MPS-120 small satellite propulsion system developed by Aerojet Rocketdyne, the economic small and medium-sized booster of the Bantum engine series, the RL10 large rocket engine, and the high thrust boost Pressure engine AR1.
Aerojet Rocketdyne is dedicated to new designs through additive manufacturing, and its Defense Advanced Program (aka Rocket Shop) stands out. The plan includes applications for supersonic, missile defense, and strategic systems.
3D Scientific Valley understands that the engine tested by Aerojet Rocketdyne is a "new dual-mode ramjet / super-combustion ram (DMRJ) engine".
A super-combustion ram engine combined with a gas turbine engine (forming a turbine-based combined cycle propulsion-TBCC system) can propel the aircraft from a stationary state to a hypersonic flight state of Mach 5 or higher and return again.
According to 3D Scientific Valley market research, Aerojet Rocketdyne has accumulated supersonic propulsion technology for more than 30 years. Aerojet Rocketdyne's super-combustion stamping engine has powered the record-setting X-51A WaveRider test. Since then, Aerojet Rocketdyne has accelerated research and development, combining previous achievements with their advancements in 3D printing / additive manufacturing, making it possible to make the next generation of hypersonic propulsion systems.
These tests also help validate the advanced analysis toolset developed by Aerojet Rocketdyne, which can accurately simulate complex DMRJ flow fields in a wide range of applications.
Due to the friction of air, the surface of any vehicle will become very hot. Hypersonic aircraft will continue to fly at high speeds exceeding Mach number 5 for a long time in the adjacent space / atmosphere. The intake port and combustion chamber of the engine adopting the suction power situation The thermal environment where such parts are located is particularly harsh. This makes the relevant parts have high requirements for the high temperature resistance of the material and the mechanical properties of the structure. At the same time, it also has strict requirements on its space shape and its own weight.
When traditional manufacturing technology can't meet the requirements, 3D printing technology opens up a new road for it. Metal 3D printing technology has been widely used in hypersonic aircraft related fields due to its ability to quickly produce parts with high material properties, special-shaped structures and overall characteristics.
According to the market observation of 3D Science Valley, the British Reaction Engines is also designing and developing a new generation of innovative supersonic propulsion system SABRE, which also uses 3D printing technology. SABER is a hybrid engine capable of flying at low and high altitudes. A major breakthrough in the development of this hybrid engine is Reaction Engines' proprietary heat exchanger technology, which prevents propellant injectors from freezing during this heat exchange process The system is manufactured using 3D printed additive manufacturing technology. The SABRE engine boosted the speed of the aircraft to Mach 5.4 (more than 6000 km / h) or even Mach 25 by inhaling oxygen from the atmosphere, then switched to hydrogen fuel and used built-in liquid oxygen. In order for the engine to work in extreme atmospheric conditions, it needs to be able to reduce the air flow drawn into the engine from over 1000 ° C to minus 150 ° C in less than one hundredth of a second. The SABRE engine does just that and the engine adds very little weight.
In addition to the application of metal 3D printing technology in hypersonic propulsion systems, according to the market observation of 3D Science Valley, high-temperature ceramic 3D printing technology is also a key area of breakthrough in the field of supersonic aircraft manufacturing. At present, very few materials can withstand the extreme heat and pressure generated during supersonic flight, and 3D printed high-temperature ceramics may be the solution to this problem. In 2016, the United States HRL Laboratory announced a new technology developed by it, which uses 3D printed super-ceramic materials that can withstand temperatures of more than 1,400 degrees Celsius. HRL Lab's research has made new progress with the support of NASA space technology research funding. NASA funding has promoted the development of HRL in the field of 3D printed rocket engine parts made of temperature-resistant ceramics. HRL currently can 3D print two types of ceramics. One is a large, very lightweight lattice structure that can be used for heat-resistant plates and other external components in aircraft and spacecraft. One is the small but complex parts of electromechanical systems or components used in jet engines and rockets.