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John O | August 2018

3-D printed heat exchanger technology gets green light from NASA


By Josh Perry, Editor
[email protected]

 

According to a report from 3DPrintingIndustry.com, Ohio-based metal 3-D printing innovator Fabrisonic recently had its patented additive manufacturing technology for heat exchangers passed NASA quality control tests and can be used in space.

 


Fabrisonic 3-D printed heat exchangers were recently approved for space flight by NASA. (Wikimedia Commons)

 

Fabrisonic created ultrasonic additive manufacturing, which combines room temperature metal disposition with the ease of traditional CNC milling. The print head is integrated into a 3-axis mill for a “hybrid additive-subtractive process” that requires only a tool change to switch from one method to the other.

 

“An ultrasonic weld operation begins by pressing a thin metal foil onto another metal component,” the Fabrisonic website explained. “While under a constant force, ultrasonic vibrations are applied to cause scrubbing of the mating faces. This shearing motion cleans off surface oxides through friction to then allow direct contact of pure metal on pure metal.

 

“The result is in a solid-state atomic bond with minimal heating. The heat and plastic deformation promote diffusion and recrystallization at the interface resulting in a true metallurgical bond.”

 

According to Fabrisonic, the solid-state bond protects the material properties of the feedstock because only minimal heating is required; it created strong bonds between dissimilar metals and avoids typical brittleness; and allows for embedding temperature-sensitive components in solid metal parts because it is a low-temperature bond.

 

3DPrintingIndustry.com noted that the Fabrisonic process is quicker than typical heat exchanger manufacturing and produced a device that is 30% lighter. NASA would use the heat exchanger to control and regulate the temperature of a vehicle’s electronic components.

 

Research took place at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and NASA’s approval pushed the technology readiness level of the Fabrisonic heat exchangers from three to six. The testing included thermal cycling from -184°F to +248°F in an environmental chamber, pressure testing to 330 psi, vibration testing to mimic rocket launch, and more.

 

A report from NASA and Fabrisonic said, “UAM heat exchanger technology developed under NASA JPL funding has been quickly extended to numerous commercial production applications. Channel widths range from 0.020 inch to greater than one inch with parts sized up to four feet in length.”

 

A full report on the research can be read at https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/3985996/NASA%20HX%20White%20Paper%20EWI.pdf.

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