SpaceX wants to use 3D printing technology for interstellar colonization

China3D printingNet September 28th, what do you think of SpaceX’s epic adventure?One might think that focus on3D printingIt might be possible to do this, but it’s not so simple: the company has taken advantage of3D printingTechnological innovation and many news appeared onmediaHeadlines. This is what Elon Musk has been doing for a long time, full of extraordinary inventions, often citing certain things that appear in novels, such as self-driving cars, space travel, developing artificial intelligence, and even trying to enhance the human brain Ability. As the years passed, Musk’s plan became bigger. He even laughed at making the Iron Man suit when he met with Secretary of Defense Ash Carter at the Pentagon in 2016, and said on his Twitter account: “Some metal flight suit…”.

Air Force General Terrence O’Shaughnessy even stated that Elon Musk’s SpaceX may have completely changed the ability to use space satellites and even poses a threat to the United States. Yes, he actually said that SpaceX launched 60 small satellites at a time.

The company was established in 2002. Its ultimate goal is to make interplanetary human life possible by designing, manufacturing and launching advanced rockets and spacecraft.The South African-born businessman has openly talked about the futureTen years willGo on an expedition to Mars and plan to build a greenhouse on the “Red Planet”, and ambitiously build a colony.
The total travel time from Earth to Mars takes 150 to 300 days, depending on many factors, such as the launch speed, the angle of the Earth to Mars, and whether there is sufficient combustion. However, every time a rocket is being developed by the scientists and engineers behind SpaceX,3D printingThe engine and the orbital shuttle seem to be getting closer.As the years go by, SpaceX has experienced some setbacks, which may not sound too optimistic, but the continuous influx of NASA contracts is prompting the company to carry out some serious research and development work, especially in3D printing.

DragonArrive at the International Space Station

The fact is, whether it is building a base with moondust or martian sand, bringing a bioprinter into space, or actually bringing the first manned missions on board3D printingThe functional red planet, this new space race will build the next generation of customizable products for use in space and on earth, and SpaceX is in a leading position.

According to Morgan Stanley (Morgan Stanley) estimates, by 2040, the global aerospace industry’s revenue will exceed 350 billion U.S. dollars, more than 1 trillion U.S. dollars, and SpaceX may be one of the largest players in the industry. SpaceX, together with competitors Blue Origin, Slingshot Aerospace, Rocket Lab, and Relativity Space, raised billions of dollars in funding to build new rockets for interplanetary launches.

“pass through3D printing, It is possible to manufacture strong and high-performance engine parts at a fraction of the cost and time of traditional manufacturing methods,” SpaceX chief designer and CEO Musk announced in 2014 that the development of the SuperDraco thruster has been completed. Designed, the engine will power the Dragon V2 spacecraft’s launch and escape system, and enable the vehicle to be accurately propelled to the earth or other planets for landing, and it will become the first fully printed rocket engine capable of full flight.


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The 60 Starlink satellites launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Base in Florida3D printingRocket

“SpaceX is pushing the limits of additive manufacturing in the 21st century, ultimately making our rockets more efficient, reliable and powerful than ever before.” Musk said.
can use3D printingTo create high-performance rocket parts and provide improvements over traditional manufacturing methods. SpaceX is pushing the limits of additive manufacturing to make the Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft more reliable, powerful and efficient than ever before.
In 2014, SpaceX launched the Falcon 9 rocket, which has3D printingThe main body of the main oxidation valve (MOV) is one of nine Merlin 1D engines.According to the company, the mission marked SpaceX’s first flight3D printingComponents, the valve successfully operates with high pressure liquid oxygen under low temperature and high vibration conditions.

During the launch of the Arabsat-6A satellite mission, SpaceX’s Merlin engine

SpaceX claims that, compared with traditional cast parts, printed valve bodies have superior strength, ductility, and fracture resistance, as well as low variability in material properties. Compared with the typical casting cycle of months, the printing time for the whole body of the MOV is less than two days. Since then, the valve has undergone an extensive test plan (including strict engine ignition, component-level qualification testing and material testing) so that the printed MOV valve body can be used in all future Falcon 9RocketFly on interchange with castings.

SuperDraco engine
SpaceX’s SuperDraco thrusters are how the company does3D printingAnother good example of the experiment, it is 100%3D printingof. The engine powers the launch and escape system of the Dragon spacecraft and enables the vehicle to land on Earth (and possibly another planet in the future) with precise precision. It is manufactured using the most advanced direct metal laser sintering (DMLS, powder bed fusion), and the chamber is regenerated and cooled and printed in Inconel. Inconel is a high-performance alloy with high strength and toughness, which can improve reliability.SpaceX has been committed to bringing humans to Mars, which means that they are building a reusable launch system, the starship spacecraft. It will be powered by the Raptor engine, which is the heaviest engine in history and the first engine to use methane, designed to be reused 1,000 times.According to SpaceX, the manufacturing process includes many3D printingParts, which can reduce costs and make the production of lighter parts possible. The printed components include propellant valves, turbo pump parts, and ejector system parts.
Some of the main challenges facing the company range from manufacturing light spacecraft to efficient engines. in this aspect,3D printingIt can greatly reduce production costs and increase the thrust-to-weight ratio of the engine because it can produce lighter parts that cannot be achieved by traditional methods. 3D printingAnother additional advantage of engine components is that the design changes are faster. Compared to weeks or even months, it allows the team to achieve the desired output faster in the iterative process.

SpaceX’s Elon Musk and preparing to launch the new Raptor rocket engine (Source: Elon Musk (Twitter)
For many years, SpaceX has been evaluating3D printingAnd improve the technology needed to develop flight hardware. In the process, some major successes have been achieved, and even cooperation with other companies will3D printingThe function of the system is pushed to orbit.In the past ten years, with the development of the additive manufacturing industry, we expect that the company will continue to carry forward this technology, and perhaps in the future, we can take a ride3D printingThe interstellar spacecraft travels in space, and this is the direction SpaceX strives for.

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