RII Track-4: @NASA: Investigation of Erosive Wear Resistance of Ceramic Parts Produced by Additive Manufacturing

University Of Alaska Anchorage Campus, Anchorage AK

Investigators

Abstract

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is a computer-controlled technique that builds three-dimensional objects by depositing materials, typically in layers. AM has been recognized to have several advantages, including the ability to manufacture a component with high complexity in a single manufacturing process, and it finds application in many sectors, such as aerospace and the biomedical industries. The ability to manufacture parts using AM even in space has made this technology extremely attractive and is considered a key technology for enhancing space vehicle designs and enabling affordable missions. Before successfully integrating additively manufactured components into space missions, their structural integrity under various environmental conditions must be examined. Erosive wear, one of the processes through which the integrity of a component can be compromised, is a dynamic process in which material is removed from a target surface because of mechanical interaction between impinging particles and the target surface. This project will: 1) study erosive wear of additively manufactured components experimentally; 2) develop predictive erosive wear models that determine the damage caused by erosive wear. Therefore, by advancing the additive manufacturing process, the project ensures US leadership in space programs and other sectors in which AM has found applications. Additive Manufacturing (AM) is crucial for fabricating customized, complex, neat-shape geometries in a single manufacturing step. The ability to manufacture parts using AM, even in space, has made this manufacturing technology extremely attractive. The structural integrity of these additively manufactured components under various environmental conditions is one of NASA’s research priorities. One of the processes through which the integrity of a component can be compromised is erosive wear, which is a dynamic process in which material is removed from a target surface because of mechanical interaction between impinging particles and the target surface. The goal of this project is to advance our understanding of the response of additively manufactured ceramic parts to erosive wear. Since erosive wear is a complex process influenced by process conditions (particle size, shape, velocity, impact angle, and environmental conditions), impact conditions (impact angle), and material mechanical properties, experimental data will be used to develop correlative predictive erosive wear models. Insights into the erosive wear mechanisms will enable the improvement of process conditions of the AM process, i.e., the data generated will help improve the microstructure and texture of components by controlling manufacturing process conditions that significantly impact material mechanical properties. Hence, the project's outcome is the generation of essential data that will be used to improve AM process; and the development of predictive erosive wear models that will be used to assess the erosive wear performance of AM fabricated ceramic components. This project would provide a faculty fellowship and support for an undergraduate research experience at the University of Alaska Anchorage. The faculty and student research team will collaborate with researchers at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.