Abstract Scope |
Additive manufacturing technologies have been rapidly adopted by the aerospace industry and aluminum alloys are critical for launch and spacecraft applications. Current printing has been limited to lower-strength Al-Si-Mg due to its printability. However, compared with traditional 7000-series engineering alloys, Al-Si-Mg has roughly half the strength. Research focused on process development, printing, characterization, and applications for a 7000-series alloy designed for AM, with superior mechanical properties, has been conducted in collaboration with commercial partners. Thermal and chemical analysis, CALPHAD tools, and mechanical testing have been utilized to characterize, develop heat treatments, and improve AM processing for this novel aluminum alloy. Physical print characterization is used in conjunction with computational software to simulate and understand the build process and precipitation strengthening behavior. Further development of these tools can both reduce experimental time and optimization for rapid insertion of high-performance AM aluminum alloys into aerospace structures. |