Aerospace materials have much higher requirements compared to other materials. They need to perform under extreme conditions such as ultra-high temperatures, ultra-low temperatures, high vacuum, high stress, and strong corrosion. Titanium is one of the few metals that can meet these demands. With the development of additive manufacturing technology, 3D-printed titanium alloy powder has been widely used in the aerospace field.

Advantages of 3D Printed Titanium Alloy Powder

Thanks to 3D printing technology, titanium alloy powder not only has similar properties to alloy profiles but also meets highly customized demands, reducing material waste.

The density of titanium alloy is only 60% of that of steel, but its strength is close to that of ordinary steel. Some high-strength titanium alloys even exceed the strength of many alloy structural steels, such as Ti-6Al-4V, Ti-6Al-4V ELI, and Ti-5Al-2.5Sn. Therefore, combined with 3D printing technology, titanium alloy powder can be used to produce components with high unit strength, good rigidity, and lightweight.

3D-printed titanium alloy components have a higher service temperature than aluminum alloys, capable of working at temperatures between 450°C and 500°C for extended periods. Moreover, titanium alloys maintain their mechanical properties at low temperatures. For example, TA7 can retain certain plasticity at -253°C. It can also function in humid atmospheres and seawater environments. The corrosion resistance of titanium alloys is far superior to that of stainless steel, particularly in resisting pitting, acid corrosion, and stress corrosion.

Summary:

• High specific strength
• High thermal strength
• Good low-temperature performance
• Strong corrosion resistance

Aircraft Using 3D Printed Titanium Alloy Powder

In recent years, there have been more and more examples of aircraft components made from titanium alloy powder. Additive manufacturing (3D printing) technology has been widely applied in the aerospace field.

1. NASA Engine Components

NASA uses 3D-printed titanium alloy powder to manufacture important parts for aircraft or rockets in different space projects. In one case, the project NASA's RS-25 engine manufactured fuel nozzles and other complicated parts with titanium alloy powder. These need to operate in a very high-temperature and high-pressure environment, where excellent high-temperature strength and corrosion resistance from titanium alloy meet the demand for these applications.

Fig 1. RS-25 engine pogo accumulator assembly

2. Aircraft Engine Components - General Electric (GE)

A typical example would be the LEAP engine from General Electric, which makes extensive use of parts manufactured through additive manufacturing, popularly known as 3D printing. For making complex geometric parts in an engine, such as nozzles and support structures in the combustion chamber, GE is using titanium alloy powder and other metal powders. These parts could be lighter and more efficient, reducing material waste during the production process with 3D printing.

3. Airbus A350 XWB Components

Airbus uses 3D printing in many parts of the A350 XWB but mainly on non-structural components. With 3D printing, Airbus can create lighter structures and have more flexibility in design. For example, Airbus made channel brackets and seat supports in the A350 XWB through 3D printing. These parts were made from titanium and aluminum alloy powders using additive manufacturing technology.

Fig 2. Liebherr produces and supplies nose landing gear bracket for Airbus A350 XWB using 3D printing technology

4. Boeing 787 Wing Components

Other 3D printing uses at Boeing are found in various parts of the 787 Dreamliner. Boeing makes some high-strength metal components with titanium alloy powder. Additive manufacturing technology in this aircraft makes complex internal structural parts and brackets that were originally found in the complex support structures within the wing components. This will be 3D printed using titanium alloy powder for better weight optimization and enhancement in the overall component performance.

Risks and Challenges

Although 3D printed components made from titanium alloy powder provide adequate performance in many applications, especially in terms of reducing weight and enhancing design flexibility, ensuring the performance of large structural components (such as wings, landing gears, etc.) still requires careful control of material quality, printing processes, and post-processing.

Among these, the quality of titanium alloy powder is critical to the performance of the final component. The particle size distribution, shape, chemical composition, and purity of the powder directly affect the properties of the finished product.

Read more: Advancing Aerospace Manufacturing: Optimizing Spherical Titanium Powder for 3D Printing Applications

Titanium Alloy Powder Supplier

Stanford Advanced Materials (SAM) is a global leading supplier of spherical metal powders, with over twenty years of experience in manufacturing and selling titanium and titanium alloy powders. If you would like to learn more about titanium alloy powders, we recommend visiting Titanium Based Powder for more information.