3DCERAM Sinto
NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, in collaboration with Jacobs Space Exploration Group, has awarded 3DCERAM Sinto a contract for a C1000 FLEXMATIC Ceramic Printer.
3DCERAM will also become a partner of NASA, as the organisation leverages the printer to make samples for small and larger pieces of new materials. These materials will be tested in space and other relative extreme environments.
The first test parts will proceed immediately with the Materials International Space Station Experiment (MISSE) program. MISSE is a testing program that secures materials samples to a panel mounted outside of the International Space Station (ISS) to study the effects of outer space on 3D printed products. Via this new partnership, 3DCERAM will be making 20 sample parts to be launched to the space station for the MISSE program next year.
These printed parts will be evaluated with a view to one day being used on the outside for vehicles in space. They will remain on the ISS for six months in order for the collaborators to gain enough knowledge about the material’s ability to withstand the space environment.
According to the partners, these tests will demonstrate the effects of in-space environmental exposures, such as zero gravity and radiation from the sun. If they perform well, flight worthy hot structures and heat shields could then be printed on the 3DCERAM C1000 FLEXMATIC.
The 3DCERAM C1000 FLEXMATIC machine boasts a build volume of 320 x 320 x 200 mm, a removable tank to allow the in-line processing of print parts, and an automatic cleaning step. It uses a UV laser as a light source, with a 60μm laser spot diameter and 405nm UV wavelength.
