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GE Is 3D Printing a Working Jet Engine

Posted by samzenpus on from the proof-of-concept dept.

lurking_giant writes: GE Aviation's Additive Development Center near Cincinnati has produced a number of firsts but they are now demonstrating a working 3D-printed jet engine, (OK, it's sized for an RC model). The engine turns at 33,000 RPM and is made from all 3D metal printed parts. They used the same EOS M270 3D printer that they use to produce the first and only FAA flight approved hardware, a T25 Pres and temp sensor for use in GE90 jumbo jet engines.

72 comments

  1. Digimon by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    Digimon
    Digital Buttfucks
    Buttfucks that are digital
    Yeah!!!

  2. Stupid toys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    Enough 3D printing shit. It's never going to catch on. This so called engine is going to waste a colossal amount of money and probably get people killed. The only thing threed printers will be good for is dildos and suicide guns. Everything else needs the kind of precision you can't get with a fancy hot glue gun.

    1. Re:Stupid toys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      > Enough 3D printing shit. It's never going to catch on.

      It already has caught on. It's improving with each passing day and it's capable of much more than we've seen or you give it credit for. It's pretty amazing IMHO.

      So, by all means, keep on hating but just STFU about it already. Let the rest of us enjoy the revolution.

    2. Re:Stupid toys by Em+Adespoton · · Score: 1

      Additionally, this used to be common, but was called prototyping using a sintering machine. The "new" bits are a) calling it "3-D Printing" and b) the wealth of software now available for ALL 3-D printing devices due to the boom in hobbyist plastics-based additive manufacturing. Having more people interested in creating additive objects means that there have also been design improvements and economies of scale across all types of additive (and subtractive) manufacturing methods.

      I'm just waiting for the day when subtractive cellulose modelling (aka carving/engraving) becomes known as 3-D Printing.

    3. Re: Stupid toys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      3D printing will never produce parts as good as the ones machined from forgings. Grain flow and metal structure is crucial in producing aircraft engine parts, 3d printing them is just a novelty, might make a nice headline and a working engine with a short lifespan but will never make it into commercial aircraft.

      Some parts are casted, beats 3D printing, their structure is a single metal crystal.

      I do this for a living and as much as I would like to program a 3D printer instead of milling and turning machines I know it will never catch up.

      Further machining will be required for 3D printed parts anyway, they end up in big assemblies and tolerances are tight.

    4. Re: Stupid toys by binarylarry · · Score: 4, Funny

      I think there's a market for maybe five 3D printers.

      --
      Mod me down, my New Earth Global Warmingist friends!
    5. Re: Stupid toys by Barny · · Score: 2

      Yeah I was going to say...

      Saw a program a while back, about RR jet engines. Some of those fan blades are not only so finely machined and built that they are hand-made, but also get internally imaged for problems or stress.

      What such tricks with 3d printing do accomplish is they let engineers build a mock-up or scale model from their designs much more efficiently than before.

      --
      ...
      /me sighs
    6. Re: Stupid toys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I do this for a living and as much as I would like to program a 3D printer instead of milling and turning machines I know it will never catch up.

      Then you should at least be aware of the dozens of other ways parts get made, and how not one of them is "beats" the other in general, because they are used for different priorities. A lot of the time, the priority is being cheaper, in which case milling loses both due to time and materials, depending on the part. There are times it is cheaper to cast, or to cut out with plasma or laser cutting depending on scale, or to EDM, etc. Our shop have turned away pieces that were better suited for 3D printing in some cases, because of they were designed for high strength to weight ratio and involved rather complicated honeycomb and internal structures that were just not worth the time and metal to machine away (likely we were being asked for a quote because they just needed multiple quotes for their purchasing process).

    7. Re:Stupid toys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, that is called 3D-Carving.

    8. Re: Stupid toys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Where exactly are you getting your knowledge base from? The parts that GE is going to be using from 3d printing are actually much stronger and more efficient than those made by any other means. Complex shapes and one of a kind designs, that would only be possible with 3d printing, are making their way into jet engines and large turbines as we type these responses. I think you need to do a little more research- or maybe a little less. Either way, I think you response is completely wrong. We are not talking about plastic toys here. Some of these parts cost in the multi thousand dollar range and higher And are strapped to multimillion dollar machines. Toys? Not even close.

    9. Re: Stupid toys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      640k of 3d printer memory is enough for anybody.

    10. Re:Stupid toys by mlts · · Score: 1

      I remember it called stereolithography, but that was mainly a type of 3D printing that used a laser and either a photosensitive liquid or powder which fused together, combined with a tray that slowly moved.

      These days, I'd just go with a DMLS setup, since if I use a decent Iconel alloy, the finishing/grinding/polishing needed iis minimal.

    11. Re: Stupid toys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Different AC here than the poster you replied to...

      I'm sorry but you are WRONG. There is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY for additive 3D printing to be stronger than forged steel. I agree that you can make complex shapes not possible by any other means, but the grain orientation is extremely important in steel lattice structure (whether forged or cast). Forging also creates a denser metallic part that eliminates or reduces voids that can cause weaknesses or failures... Cast or forged steel does not have inherent discontinuities. Please realize that additive printing is the same as creating hundreds or thousands of laminations that can be considered to be hundreds or thousands of SHEAR PLANES... I would NEVER trust a part with inherent shear planes to perform without failure in a high stress environment such as jet propulsion...

      So I ask: Where does your unfounded trust from?

      Given any two steel parts where one is 3D printed, and the other is forged, under the same test conditions (regardless what they are), the 3D printed part will fail first 100 times out of 100. That is 100%. EVERY TIME. 3D printed part cannot outperform forged part.

      I specifically refer to steel because you do not forge aluminum. Although the same rationale could be used for comparing 3D additive printing of aluminum or steel to cast aluminum or cast steel. The discontinous grain boundaries will lead to failure.

    12. Re:Stupid toys by Luckyo · · Score: 1

      3D printing is already among the primary means of prototyping.

    13. Re: Stupid toys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      > I'm sorry but you are WRONG. There is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY for additive 3D printing to be stronger than forged steel.

      Read it and weep:
      http://3dprintingindustry.com/2014/02/07/german-scientists-3d-print-lightweight-material-stronger-steel/

    14. Re: Stupid toys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's an interesting link, but you fail to provide a valid argument to address my point...

      Those 3D printed materials are only stronger than steel in COMPRESSIVE strength... Concrete has amazing compressive strength too, but you don't see much concrete used to build an airplane or turbine engine do you?

      Also the printed materials are ceramic... While they are lightweight, the compressive strength of a material has very little value when it is shear strength or lateral strength that is the crucial aspect.

      I'm sorry, I must respectfully disagree with your view.

    15. Re: Stupid toys by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Okay, but you weren't specific as to what you meant by "strength."

      So how about 3D printing with carbon fiber ?

      The whole point of this exercise is that the properties of a material change with how you structure it, and 3D printing gives you access to lots of structure options.

      More materials are becoming possible every day, so to make a flat statement that "There is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY for additive 3D printing to be stronger than forged steel" is foolish, as you will be proved wrong sooner or later, no matter what isolated property of steel you choose to compare against.

  3. this is terrible by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    the only approved hardware is sensor, so anything else is not approved!

    1. Re:this is terrible by bobbied · · Score: 3, Informative

      It's a Sensor HOUSING, not the sensor that goes in it.

      --
      "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
  4. Fuuuuuuck off with the 3D printing. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    Please?

  5. I 3D printed a turd today. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Informative

    It was fucking beautiful. 3D printing is the saviour of the world. Nothing is more interesting or newsworthy. If it has not been 3D printed it does not exist and no one cares about it.

    So go forth and 3D print your turds everywhere!

    1. Re:I 3D printed a turd today. by TWX · · Score: 5, Funny

      That's an extrusion process, not a printing process.

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    2. Re:I 3D printed a turd today. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      Everyone else has had butt secks but me.....
      (Includes your mom and dad).

    3. Re:I 3D printed a turd today. by bobbied · · Score: 1

      Technically, ink jets use an extrusion process too, but they print... Maybe he was talking about the TP?

      Sorry, bad joke.. Back to work..

      --
      "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
    4. Re:I 3D printed a turd today. by F34nor · · Score: 2

      I'm not sure you're right. It adds metal powders and melts them with a laser. That's why it can create alloys, by mixing dry metal powders and then heating them to precise temperatures. .

    5. Re:I 3D printed a turd today. by TWX · · Score: 1

      Reread the GP post from subject line all of the way through. I wasn't replying to anything involving metal powder or lasers, assuming the average diet...

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
  6. How long by rossdee · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    will a 3d printed (presumably plastic) jet engine last?

    Wake me when they have 3d printers that print in Titanium

    I'm guessing they will have 3d printers that work in soft metals like gold and silver before too long
    of course the cartidges will cost both arms and both legs...

    1. Re:How long by countSudoku() · · Score: 0, Troll

      Wake up, idiot! The fucking thing "is made from all 3D metal printed parts"

      --
      This is the NSA, we're gonna geet U h@x0r5! Also, what is a h@x0r5?
    2. Re:How long by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Really....
      Metal 3D printers have been out for sometime.

    3. Re:How long by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      will a 3d printed (presumably plastic) jet engine last?

      Wake me when they have 3d printers that print in Titanium

      I'm guessing they will have 3d printers that work in soft metals like gold and silver before too long
      of course the cartidges will cost both arms and both legs...

      RTFA "The engine turns at 33,000 RPM and is made from all 3D metal printed parts."

    4. Re:How long by kbonin · · Score: 5, Interesting

      DMLS printing uses metal powders sintered by high power lasers. The metals not only include Titanium and Inconel (rocket engine superalloy), but can include gradient transitions between them in the same piece. While some surface work may be required for some applications, the crystalline structure of the metal itself is of finer quality that that produced by machining + annealing used for high grade parts the old fashioned way.

      These are not your homebrew melted plastic filament printers, and they are changing manufacturing.

    5. Re:How long by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >will a 3d printed (presumably plastic) jet engine last?
      Good thing you read the... nevermind. "The engine .. is made from all 3D _metal_ printed parts."

      >Wake me when they have 3d printers that print in Titanium
      Printing of titanium alloys is possible already. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3D_printing

      >I'm guessing they will have 3d printers that work in soft metals like gold and silver before too long
      of course the cartidges will cost both arms and both legs... ... of course they do. There is reason 3D printers aren't called Philosopher's Stones.

    6. Re:How long by TWX · · Score: 1

      Sintering is also not a new technology by any means either. The use of the laser in the process is relatively new at around 20 years, but additive methods of working with specific materials, then machining the assembly to final size is quite old. It's an injustice to the process to call it 3d printing.

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    7. Re:How long by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Holy smokes. I can only imagine how you react when you catch your wife cheating on someone.

    8. Re:How long by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      It certainly is not new in the turbine field. Metal sintering with lasers is used to repair and re-edge turbine blades in compressors and has been for many years.

    9. Re:How long by kimvette · · Score: 1

      You don't even need to RTFA to learn the printed parts are metal - it's stated right in the summary.

      --
      The Christian Right is Neither (Christian nor right). See: Matthew 23, Matthew 25, Ezekiel 16:48-50
    10. Re:How long by F34nor · · Score: 1

      Someone made a working 1911 acp with this tech years ago.

    11. Re:How long by LifesABeach · · Score: 1

      Could a working stepper motor be built using a 3d printer?

    12. Re:How long by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      if you want to wind it yourself. and dont care about minimizing volume or maximizing torque or efficiency...i suppose

    13. Re:How long by mrchaotica · · Score: 1

      That sounds impressive until you remember that the 1911 acp is named such because it was first produced over a century ago, in 1911. I mean, making it using a new technology is fine and dandy, but it's not as if the object itself is particularly complicated, built to a fine tolerance, or anything like that.

      --

      "[Regarding the 'cloud,'] ownership was what made America different than Russia." -- Woz

    14. Re:How long by drinkypoo · · Score: 2

      making it using a new technology is fine and dandy, but it's not as if the object itself is particularly complicated, built to a fine tolerance, or anything like that.

      You can still buy sloppy 1911s, but most of them are CNC milled now and they are actually pretty tight. Someone has to break them in, in fact; for Kimbers and cheaper ones it's you, for more expensive ones it's usually someone else.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    15. Re:How long by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      GP said "wake me up when they can print in titanium" and parent said "wake up, idiot!"

      The "idiot" part was gratuitous but otherwise parent was just following through on GP's request. :-)

    16. Re:How long by gl4ss · · Score: 2

      you could build it by hand.

      you can build the metal parts with a metal 3d printer.. more expensive than traditional methods for no benefit though. the magnets? i suppose you could, but for what benefit? and the coils? well you most certainly would like to use a coiling machine to coil them up.. but printing the copper in place as the coils.. would be too expensive and too stupid.

      anyways, https://www.youtube.com/watch?... as you can see, not _everything_ about it is 3d printed.

      --
      world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
    17. Re:How long by jabuzz · · Score: 2

      DMLS printing is not going to produce single crystal turbine blades, and is therefore not going to compete any time soon in that space. You might be able to print all the parts of a jet engine, but the result is not going to match the performance of one assembled from more conventional manufacturing processes. Even a 1% drop in efficiency of a jet engine is basically unacceptable in the airline industry these days.

    18. Re:How long by TheDarkMaster · · Score: 1

      You urgently need to learn to read, especially to understand what you read.

      --
      Religion: The greatest weapon of mass destruction of all time
    19. Re:How long by mlts · · Score: 1

      A local place (Solid Concepts) made a 1911 out of DMLS sintered Iconel. All parts including the barrel, sear, trigger mechanism... everything but the grips. It didn't blow up or have any issues after 1000 rounds ran through it.

      Mitsubishi has a DMLS machine that does both the sintering and machining (both additive and subtractive), which not just would allow a 1911 to be made, but the parts coming out just needing final assembly.

      Of course, there are other uses than firearms.

    20. Re:How long by LWATCDR · · Score: 1

      But most modern gas turbines use single crystal turbine blades to reduce creep. I doubt that DMLS material will work as well.

      --
      See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
    21. Re:How long by boa · · Score: 1

      "Wake me when they have 3d printers that print in Titanium"

      http://build.slashdot.org/stor...

  7. The future by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This really shows what the future of 3D printing will look like. Couple that with open source or low-cost model design and assembly... it's really something impressive.

  8. Future Shock is here by Tablizer · · Score: 1

    Please select one or more objects to 3D print:
    [_] Airplane
    [_] Howitzer
    [_] Missile
    [_] Nuke

    --
    Table-ized A.I.
    1. Re: Future Shock is here by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      [_] Can Opener
      [_] GI Joe Figure
      [_] Dog Chew Toy

      There, ftfy.

    2. Re: Future Shock is here by bobbied · · Score: 1

      [X] Can Opener

      --
      "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
    3. Re: Future Shock is here by F34nor · · Score: 3, Funny

      [X] Young Lady's Illustrated Primer

    4. Re: Future Shock is here by LifesABeach · · Score: 1

      I was thinking along the lines of an electric drill.

    5. Re:Future Shock is here by Sooner+Boomer · · Score: 1

      [_] Another 3D printer (some assembly required)

      --
      Chaos maximizes locally around me.
    6. Re:Future Shock is here by bn-7bc · · Score: 0

      Hmm let's see with options are realistic Airplane; pending certification py local/international aircraft authoreties (faa and eqvivalent The rest local/national/international rules on military grade vepons Aditional for nuke : haha dream on Faa certification; pending detailt an costly review of partsan final asembly I hav got one thing to say: good luck with that but poibts for trying

    7. Re:Future Shock is here by cheesybagel · · Score: 1

      [X] Giant Robot

  9. Pretty cool trick, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Prototyping is great, but the real cost benefit of 3D printing will be in the generation of tooling for production runs. Right now making tooling is a huge percentage of the cost and time to produce parts

  10. What are the post-processing steps? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You keep hearing about "3D printed" this and that, but does it just come off the printer's bed ready to go? Does it need to be trued, balanced, machined, bored, and heat-treated in a hydrogen atmosphere somehow?

    Because I get the feeling that a lot of the fantastical claims for 3D printing are a little bit overblown IMO.

  11. #D printing by amightywind · · Score: -1

    Doesn't make forged titanium parts without cracks or flaws. A useless exersize, but enough to entertain this crowd apparently.

    --
    an ill wind that blows no good
  12. Deja Vu? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Didn't we have this dance a couple of months ago?

    http://build.slashdot.org/story/15/02/27/157249/researchers-create-worlds-first-3d-printed-jet-engines

  13. AH hahaha only 33000 rpm? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    You guys know that normal RC jet engine go all the way to 100-200K rpm right? 33000 isn't even idle.

    Other fun facts:
    Stress goes up with rpm squared
    Most of the thrust is generated at 80-100% rpm
    This thing is teh sux

    1. Re:AH hahaha only 33000 rpm? by NewtonsLaw · · Score: 1

      Yep, "it idles" woohoo!

      Not only that but the parts I saw being modeled and printed were low-stress components such as the stand (wow!) and the exhaust tube.

      Were the compressor and turbine wheels printed? Those are the crucial parts and the ones exposed to maximum stress.

      A great proof of concept but they tell us that this was made using materials "not available to the hobby industry" so why does it perform so poorly, especially since they claim to have enhanced the design.

      I smell marketing department hype here ;-)

  14. Finally! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Somebody who gets it! *high five*

  15. Has 3D-printer already printed itself? by renergy · · Score: 1

    that is the question. I mean, at least the mechanical parts, of course it cannot print electronics.

    1. Re:Has 3D-printer already printed itself? by cdrudge · · Score: 1

      That's the underlying goal of RepRap Printers, self replication. A decent amount of the components can be self replicated.

    2. Re:Has 3D-printer already printed itself? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The problem is, they haven't got very far with it. Last time I checked, a majority of the mass of the printer was made up from so-called "vitamins" -- the parts that cannot be printed. Mostly these were various metal parts such as threaded rods, nuts, and bolts.

      On the other hand, apart from the print nozzle itself, pretty much the all the vitamins are standard off-the-shelf parts that don't have to be specially made for the printer, so they are playing to the strengths of 3D printing by having the printer print the more "one off" type parts.

    3. Re:Has 3D-printer already printed itself? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      of course it cannot print electronics.

      That may not be as far away as you think:

      Voxel8: The World's First 3D Electronics Printer

  16. printing a 3d printer by gl4ss · · Score: 1

    things you need to buy(depending on model, some don't user linears so you can skip them, but need buy some other stuff more):

    *control board(30-70 bucks).
    *power supply(old pc supply will do, 12V, 10-40 bucks)
    *some sort of straight rod or tubing(tubing is ok for using with printed bushings).
    *some electric wiring.
    *hot end(20-100 bucks). comes with a heating element and a temp sensitive resistor.
    *some stepper motors(4 ,5-20 bucks /piece).
    *some sort of build plate(piece of glass, 20cm*20cm typically, 2 bucks)

    if you were shopping carefully, I'm fairly sure you could do a funbot or smartrap build for 80-100 bucks + printed parts. you can print a rack and pinion so you don't need the belts, or use fishing line instead.

    why are repraps that add a 200 bucks worth of linear guides and belts and a little cut plywood, metal or polycarbonate then going sometimes 800$+? don't really know. lulzbot is a particular example of a vendor that has a seemingly astronomical markup whilst not really adding anything expensive to the product.

    you can get pretty decent kits for 300-400 bucks now that will perform just as well as a lulzbot nearing 2000 bucks(and way better than current makerbots).

    --
    world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
  17. Can it melt steel beams? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Can it?

  18. I was talking to a GE engineer... by Thelasko · · Score: 1

    about this technology, and he mentioned that this process allows combustor shapes not possible through traditional manufacturing methods. This means new opportunities for jet engine performance and emissions.

    This is the same technology used by SpaceX on their engines.

    --
    One of our competitors trademarked the term "hypothesis". From now on, we will call them "boneheaded ideas".
  19. 3D printed jet-engine parts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    3D printed jet-engine parts are so old they show them being made on TV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxO-STrOW6o#t=8m30