A Study on Using the Additive Manufacturing Process for the Development of a Closed Pump Impeller for Mechanically Pumped Fluid Loop Systems
Alexandra Adiaconitei,
Ionut Sebastian Vintila,
Radu Mihalache,
Alexandru Paraschiv,
Tiberius Frigioescu,
Mihai Vladut,
Laurent Pambaguian
Affiliations
Alexandra Adiaconitei
Satellites and Space Equipment Department, Romanian Research and Development Institute for Gas Turbines (COMOTI), 061126 Bucharest, Romania
Ionut Sebastian Vintila
Satellites and Space Equipment Department, Romanian Research and Development Institute for Gas Turbines (COMOTI), 061126 Bucharest, Romania
Radu Mihalache
Satellites and Space Equipment Department, Romanian Research and Development Institute for Gas Turbines (COMOTI), 061126 Bucharest, Romania
Alexandru Paraschiv
Gas Turbine Special Equipment, Physics and Mechanical Testing Laboratory, Romanian Research and Development Institute for Gas Turbines (COMOTI), 061126 Bucharest, Romania
Tiberius Frigioescu
Gas Turbine Special Equipment, Physics and Mechanical Testing Laboratory, Romanian Research and Development Institute for Gas Turbines (COMOTI), 061126 Bucharest, Romania
Mihai Vladut
Quality Control Technology Department, Romanian Research and Development Institute for Gas Turbines (COMOTI), 061126 Bucharest, Romania
Laurent Pambaguian
European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESA-ESTEC), Mechanical Department, European Space Agency, 2200 AG Noordwijk, The Netherlands
The efficiency of a centrifugal pump for mechanical pump fluid loops, apart from the design, relies on the performance of the closed impeller which is linked to the manufacturing process in terms of dimensional accuracy and the surface quality. Therefore, the activities of this paper were focused on defining the manufacturing process of a closed impeller using the additive manufacturing technology for mechanically pumped fluid loop (MPFL) systems in space applications. Different building orientations were studied to fabricate three closed impellers using selective laser melting technology and were subjected to dimensional accuracy and surface quality evaluations in order to identify the optimal building orientation. The material used for the closed impeller is Inconel 625. The results showed that both geometrical stability and roughness were improved as the building orientation increased, however, the blade thickness presented small deviations, close to imposed values. Finishing processes for inaccessible areas presented significant results in terms of roughness, nevertheless, the process can be further improved. Abrasive flow machining (AFM) post-processing operations have been considered and the results show major improvements in surface quality. Thus, important steps were made towards the development of complex structural components, consequently increasing the technological readiness level of the additive manufacturing process for space applications.