Key materials for 3D printing of high-temperature components in aerospace industry
With the rapid development of aerospace technology, the requirements for the performance of aircraft core components have become increasingly stringent. Components such as engine nozzles, combustion chamber linings, and rocket thrust chambers need to withstand extreme conditions of over 1000°C, including high temperatures, high pressure, and severe corrosion. Traditional manufacturing methods and materials have gradually reached their performance limits. At this point, metal 3D printing, which combines laser selective melting technology and high-performance molybdenum wire materials, is becoming a revolutionary solution for manufacturing next-generation high-temperature components.
Molybdenum, a refractory metal, possesses inherent physical and chemical properties that make it an ideal choice for high-temperature applications. When it is applied in the SLM process in the form of high-purity, highly consistent metal powder, its advantages can be fully realized:
Extremely high melting point (2620°C): This is the core advantage of molybdenum. It ensures that the printed components can maintain their shape and structural integrity even in environments with temperatures far exceeding the limits of nickel-based superalloys.
Excellent high-temperature strength and hardness: Below the recrystallization temperature, the molybdenum components possess outstanding creep resistance and mechanical strength, capable of withstanding huge mechanical stresses at high temperatures.
Excellent thermal conductivity and low thermal expansion coefficient: Excellent thermal conductivity helps to quickly dissipate heat during the printing process and in actual use, reducing heat stress concentration; the low thermal expansion coefficient ensures the dimensional stability of the components under drastic temperature changes.
Outstanding corrosion resistance: Molybdenum has excellent resistance to various molten metals and high-temperature gas environments, which is crucial for components that operate in harsh conditions for an extended period.
Laser selective melting is a precise metal additive manufacturing technology. It uses a high-energy laser beam to melt micron-sized metal powders (specifically molybdenum powder) layer by layer based on the three-dimensional CAD model data, ultimately directly manufacturing dense and geometrically highly complex metal parts.
Combining SLM technology with powder made from molybdenum wires has brought a revolutionary change to aerospace manufacturing:
Design Freedom and Structural Optimization: SLM technology can print complex internal flow channels, honeycomb lattice structures, and thin-walled curved surfaces that are impossible to achieve through traditional processing methods (such as casting and machining). This is crucial for realizing the active cooling channels of rocket nozzles and achieving lightweighting of components.
Integrated forming and rapid iteration: Without assembling multiple parts, it is possible to print integrated components with integrated functions in one go, reducing connection points and potential failure points. At the same time, it significantly shortens the cycle from design to prototype verification.
Material high performance and consistency: By precisely controlling the laser parameters and scanning path, the SLM-formed molybdenum components have a dense internal structure and fine grains, often achieving better mechanical properties than traditional processes.
In the aerospace field, components printed from molybdenum wires and molybdenum powder using SLM technology are playing an irreplaceable role:
Rocket engine thrust chamber and nozzle: These components are directly exposed to combustion gases with temperatures of up to several thousand degrees. The molybdenu components printed by SLM, with their outstanding high-temperature resistance and the achievable complex cooling channels， can effectively ensure the stable operation and reusable nature of the engine.
Aerospace high-temperature structural components: such as heat insulation cover support frames, high-temperature sensor housings, etc. These components need to reduce weight while withstanding aerodynamic heat and structural loads. The strength-to-weight ratio and heat resistance of molybdenum are highly advantageous in this regard.
Semiconductor industry high-temperature furnace components: Although not related to aerospace, this application also demonstrates its high-temperature performance, such as wafer sintering supports, heaters, etc.
Pure molybdenum SLM printing also faces challenges, mainly due to its inherent room-temperature brittleness and the tendency for recrystallization brittleness at high temperatures. Current research and industrial practice are addressing this issue through two approaches:
Material innovation: The use of molybdenum alloy powders, such as molybdenum-rhenium alloy, molybdenum-tungsten alloy, or oxide dispersion strengthened molybdenum. These alloy elements can effectively enhance the toughness and recrystallization temperature of molybdenum, thereby improving the reliability and service life of the printed components.
Process improvement: By optimizing SLM process parameters (such as laser power, scanning speed, and chamber atmosphere control), the dynamic state of the molten pool and the solidification process can be precisely controlled, resulting in high-quality formed parts with a density exceeding 99.5% and very few internal defects.
In the new aerospace era that strives for higher thrust-to-weight ratio, higher reliability and greater reusability, the laser selective melting technology has opened up the door for design, while molybdenum wire and its alloy powders provide the material foundation that crosses performance boundaries. The combination of these two elements makes it possible to manufacture complex components that operate in extreme environments, featuring high temperature resistance, corrosion resistance and lightweight properties.
Molybdenum Wire is in demand in various parts of the world, such as: USA, Canada, Chile, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Germany, France, United Kingdom, Italy, Sweden, Austria, Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Spain, Czech Republic, Poland.
As professional Chinese manufacturer, Mosten Alloy can produce and supply molybdenum electrode, molybdenum strip, molybdenum sheet, molybdenum pellet, molybdenum block, molybdenum tube, molybdenum rod, molybdenum wire, molybdenum processing workpiece according to customer demand.
