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Monday 18 June 2018

Air force considers additive manufacturing to expand hypersonic flight capabilities




A sample of additively manufactured silicon oxycarbide (SiOC) material is tested at Arnold Air Force Base. The testing was conducted as part of a Cooperative Research and Development – Material Transfer Agreement between the Air Force Research Laboratory Aerospace Systems Directorate and HRL Laboratories. The Air Force is testing materials produced through ceramic additive manufacturing to advance their potential future use in hypersonic flight vehicles. Scientists with the Air Force Research Laboratory Aerospace Systems Directorate recently entered into a Cooperative Research and Development – Material Transfer Agreement with HRL Laboratories to test additively manufactured silicon oxycarbide (SiOC) materials. The geometric complexity of components that can be produced through additive manufacturing in conjunction with the refractory nature of ceramics holds enormous potential for a variety of future Air Force applications. One such possible application is hypersonic flight, which exposes materials to extreme environments including high temperatures.
The potential of the HRL-produced materials for demanding Air Force applications became apparent while Aerospace Systems Directorate scientists were searching for new thermocouple radiation shields. The SiOC materials were produced through an additive manufacturing process utilizing a pre-ceramic resin. Following part fabrication, the pre-ceramic resin was heat treated to convert the component to a fully ceramic state. AFRL scientists became interested in HRL’s novel process taking advantage of state-of-the-art 3D printing capabilities and pre-ceramic resin chemistry as well as the possible performance of the final SiOC materials at high temperatures.
Read more: Air force considers additive manufacturing to expand hypersonic flight capabilities

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