Eplus3D and LEAP 71: Noyron TKL-200 aluminum rocket thruster showcase
This part is exhibited at Formnext 2025 in Frankfurt, Germany, at the Eplus3D booth Hall 12.0 E101
LEAP 71 collaborated with Eplus3D to produce this 200 kN rocket engine printed from AlSi10Mg, a high-performance aluminum alloy. The engine uses cryogenic liquid oxygen and kerosene as propellants.
The design was created autonomously by the Noyron RP Large Computational Engineering Model. It was 3D-printed on an Eplus3D EP-M650-1600 Metal Powder Bed Fusion (MPBF) printer utilizing six 500W lasers. The printer has a build platform of 650x650mm and can print up to 1600mm in height.
The engine stands more than 1.3m (4ft 3″) tall and takes advantage of the significant build volume of the Eplus3D printer.
The thruster’s 200 kN (45000 lbf) thrust level is on the higher end for a small launcher first stage application, which would typically use three such engines. It is designed for a chamber pressure of 100 bar, and burns more than 70 kg of propellant every second.
The engine was rapidly designed in less than 3 weeks without the use of traditional CAD. Each computational iteration in Noyron RP takes around 30 minutes to execute, and produces a functional engine in its entirety.
The metal printing process at Eplus3D was completed in 354 hours, spanning approximately two weeks. The print was executed continuously without interruption, which is evident in the superior quality of the part. To enhance the surface finish, the process chamber maintained an oxygen level below 100ppm.
For this AlSi10Mg aluminum print, a layer height of 60µm was chosen to minimize the roughness of the cooling channel walls. The channels run helically around the engine to carry the propellants for regenerative cooling of the combustion chamber.
No post-processing, such as sand-blasting or heat treatment was performed on the part, to showcase the quality as-printed.
The combination of computational design and industrial 3D printing promises extremely short design-produce-test-redesign cycles measured in weeks, versus months or years in traditional engineering and manufacturing.
The use of aluminum in rocket propulsion systems enables very lightweight engines, with a thrust/weight ratio thought to be impossible. However, since aluminum has a critically low melting point, the engine design needs to take advantage of the capabilities of Computational Engineering and metal 3D printing to route intricate cooling channels around the engine.
The engine uses a two-stage propellant cooling strategy. Cryogenic liquid oxygen absorbs the thermal load of the main combustion chamber. The upper part of the nozzle is cooled using kerosene.
Noyron’s computational AI adjusts the thermal strategy to eliminate hotspots and varies the combustion chamber wall thickness to improve conductivity, while maintaining structural integrity to withstand the pressures of the 3000ºC hot exhaust gases.
The combination of Computational Engineering and advanced industrial 3D printing allows us to functionally integrate the engine components, including combustion chamber, cooling features, manifolds, injector elements, ignition system, and structural parts.
The result is an rocket motor design that consists of only two main parts.
The print of an engine of this size requires an industrial AM system, with a very large build volume, such as the Eplus3D M650-1600 system.
About Eplus3D
Eplus3D is a professional additive manufacturing equipment manufacturer and application solution provider, especially in the field of metal 3D printers. Since founding the first PBF machine in China in 1993, Eplus3D is engaged in research and development of industrial-grade Additive Manufacturing systems and application technologies using MPBF™ (Metal Powder Bed Fusion) and PPBF™ (Polymer Powder Bed Fusion) 3D printing technology.
Eplus3D has four facilities in Beijing, Hangzhou, Stuttgart and Houston, with an annual scientific research investment of more than 20% of the revenue with comprehensive invention patents, utility model patents, software copyrights as well as appearance patents. It has made remarkable achievements in the design, process, software, materials and post-processing development for additive manufacturing.
For more information, please visit https://eplus3d.com
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