In 3D metal on space

3D printers are increasingly popular from industrial factories to household. However, the European Space Agency (ESA) project, in collaboration with the European Commission, goes further to bring 3D printers to the ISS.

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The AMAZE project will move to a special 3D printer space station that will not only produce conventional plastic details but will also provide custom metal objects, up to 2m in size. These details can be assembled into a special satellite, from the ISS to fly to the moon or Mars, with much less time and effort than conventional ground-based missions.

ESA is considering five potential metals to create high-tech alloys in space, said Gizmag's David Jarvis, ESA's new Head of Materials and Materials Research. They must also be durable, not melted at 3,500 degrees Celsius under the action of laser, electron beam or plasma.

Gizmag says the metals used in the project include elements such as tungsten, niobium, and even platinum, from space that produces high-strength but lightweight components.

This 3D metal project , if successful, will not only serve space research but will also be useful for many other industries such as aviation, automobiles, applications in nuclear fusion. Support $ 26 million to test different types of 3D metal in Germany, Italy, Norway and the UK. ESA believes they will own the first metal- on- metal 3D printing technology . It is known that NASA (USA) is also deploying similar technology but only at the level of processing polymer materials.