Metal powder firms add capacity as aerospace recovers

Australian additive manufacturing firm Amaero is advancing plans to open several sites around the world, as the aerospace industry shows signs of recovery from disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Amaero is planning to develop a 3D printing centre in the Middle East and has submitted a draft letter of intent. It expects to start contract negotiations during the first half of the 2022 financial year, the company said today. Earlier this month, Amaero said it is building an $8mn titanium alloy gas atomisation powder manufacturing facility in Victoria, Australia. It expects construction and commissioning to take 18 months.

Gas atomisation produces high-quality powders in large quantities at relatively low cost suitable for additive manufacturing. The plant will convert titanium alloy bar stock into powder for 3D printing for the aerospace industry.

Amaero has signed an initial agreement with a metal powder supply company that it said has established market channels for metal powder sales. Two of the five largest defence companies globally have expressed interest in the project, indicating strong potential demand for titanium-aluminium-vanadium (Ti-6Al-4V) powder. Production of the alloy is dominated by China and Russia, and buyers are looking to diversify their supply chains, particularly in the wake of disruptions caused by the pandemic.

The facility will position Amaero as a vertically integrated metal 3D printing company, manufacturing and supplying metal powders along with 3D printing machines and ancillary equipment, as well as manufacturing parts for production contracts.

Amaero opened a site in California in the US in early 2020 and has delivered satellite components to aerospace and defence manufacturer Boeing for qualification, after receiving a purchase order in December 2020.

Canada-based scrap recycling firm Globe Metal, which serves the aerospace and additive manufacturing industries said recently that the aerospace industry is reopening and titanium requirements are rising. The industry accounts for around 90pc of titanium consumption.

Argus assessed prices for aerospace quality Ti-6Al-4V turnings at $1.60-1.85/lb delivered US dealer/processor last week, their highest since January 2016.

While additive manufacturing has been part of the aerospace industry for decades, advances in technology and standardisation are enabling manufacturers to move beyond using it for prototypes to produce complex components. Components that are 3D printed can be lighter, more durable and cost less to produce. In January, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and US-based standards organisation ASTM International introduced a new standard for qualification of laser beam powder bed fusion (PFB-LB) in the aerospace industry.

Requirements for carbon emissions reduction in the transport sector are increasing the use of 3D printed parts in aerospace, as lighter aircraft burn less fuel. The development of low-carbon processing technologies for producing metal powders also makes them increasingly attractive.

Metal powder producers are developing new products in response. Russian powder metallurgy plant Polema said on 26 July that it has started production of a range of powder alloys for aerospace. It is using gas atomisation technology to produce a cobalt-chromium alloy, a nickel-chromium-cobalt-manganese alloy and several nickel-chromium-cobalt-aluminium and nickel-chromium-cobalt copper alloys. The alloys are highly corrosion resistant, maintain strength and flexibility at low temperatures, and remain stable during thermomechanical treatment.

Polema has also developed two nickel-chromium-aluminium-yttrium (Ni-Cr-Al-Y) alloys, which can be used for heat-protective coatings on components of internal combustion engines. They are alloyed with hafnium and rhenium by gas atomisation. Polema previously used calcium hydride for the reduction of oxides in producing of Ni-Cr-Al-Y alloys.

US-based Hyperion and German 3D printing firm EOS are negotiating a partnership to deploy Hyperion's low-carbon, low-cost technologies for producing titanium powders for additive manufacturing.

Hyperion plans to start pilot production of spherical titanium powders during the third quarter of this year, initially using titanium scrap and/or sponge but with the ability to also recycle powders. It is also developing its non-spherical powder technology for use at its Titan mining project in Tennessee, US. The agreement between Hyperion and EOS will expire on 1 June 2022.

By Nicole Willing