Engineers at NASA 3-D , who were working with additive manufacturing, have developed the first full-scale, 3D printed copper rocket engine part – a combustion chamber liner that operates at extreme temperatures and pressures. NASA said that the process they used to make the combustion chamber has the potential to drastically reduce the time and money needed to manufacture rocket parts.

Additive manufacturing has all the potential to reduce the time and cost of making rocket parts like the copper liner found in rocket combustion chambers where super-cold propellants are mixed and heated to the extreme temperatures needed to send rockets to space.

The part is built with GRCo-84, a copper alloy created by scientists at NASA’s Glenn Research Centre in Ohio, where extensive materials characterization helped to validate the 3D printing processing parameters and ensure build quality.

Tidbits

1. National Aeronautics and Space Administration was formed in July 1958 and it is headquartered in Washington DC. 
2. The Motto of NASA is For the Benefit of All. 
3. NASA has conducted many manned and unmanned spaceflight programs throughout its history.
4. The International Space Station (ISS) combines NASA’s Space Station Freedom project with the Soviet/Russian Mir-2station, the European Columbus station, and the Japanese Kibō laboratory module.
5. NASA’s ongoing investigations include in-depth surveys of Mars and Saturn and studies of the Earth and the Sun.