In order to improve the operating temperature and engine efficiency of gas turbines, the aerospace and power industry has continuously designed and developed turbine blades for gas turbines with more complex internal cooling channels.
In order to form a highly complex internal cooling channel structure when casting metal turbine blades, it is necessary to use a ceramic casting core. After the casting blade is cooled, the blade is taken out of the mold, and at the same time, the internal ceramic core needs to be dissolved away.
The currently designed ceramic casting cores are becoming more and more complex, but ceramic cores of such a highly complex structure cannot be achieved by traditional injection molding methods. Lithoz's LCM technology enables the production of highly complex structural ceramic products not possible with traditional processes. Therefore, LCM technology provides the perfect solution for the highly complex structured ceramic blade cores in the aerospace and power industries to meet their growing design needs.
In addition, LCM technology can quickly and cost-effectively produce a small batch of prototype products. Because the technology does not require molds, the R & D-market cycle is greatly shortened.
Compared with the traditional injection molding manufacturing blade core technology, 3D printing technology is a manufacturing technology that does not require molds. Therefore, 3D printing technology can bypass the expensive and complicated mold manufacturing parts required by traditional processes.
3D printed blade core material
LithaCore 450 is a silicon-based material developed by Austrian Lithoz company for 3D printing to produce ceramic blade cores.
Typical applications are: casting cores for the production of single crystal nickel-based alloy turbine blades; directional solidification casting cores; equiaxed casting cores.
LithaCore 450 is a material that can 3D print high-precision, high-detail ceramic blade cores. The sintered blade core product has the advantages of very low thermal expansion rate, high porosity, excellent surface quality and excellent filterability.
In addition, Lithoz can develop customized materials for customers to meet their extensive alloy casting needs.
Blade casting cores produced using Lithoz's CeraFab 8500 equipment, LithaCore 450 material
Lithoz's 3D printed blade cast core core performance
LCM technology can produce ceramic blade cores with high precision and highly complex structure. And has the following characteristics:
(1) Excellent dimensional repeatability and tolerance
(2) The maximum size can reach 300mm
(3) Surface finish Ra <3 μm to ensure the surface quality of the internal channel of the alloy casting
(4) Highly complex structures, such as the thinnest wing can reach 200 μm
Research on Model Size and Printed Product Tolerance
LithaCore450 ceramic blade cores are produced using Lithoz's CeraFab 8500 equipment. The results of the dimensional inspection of the cast core (below) show that the maximum deviation from the CAD model is 0.1mm, which meets the dimensional requirements for cast core applications (usually 0.3 mm).