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NASA and Aerojet Rocketdyne has completed tests on a three-dimensional printed rocket engine injector that the agency hopes can cut manufacturing costs by 70 percent.
The NASA-Aerojet team of engineers used lasers that work to melt and fuse fine metallic powders into three-dimensional structures for the rocket engine injector, NASA said Thursday.
According to the agency, 3-D printing could cut down the production time of rocket engines injector from one year to less than four months.
“Rocket engine components are complex machined pieces that require significant labor and time to produce,” said Tyler Hickman, who led the testing at Glenn Research Center.
“The injector is one of the most expensive components of an engine,” he added.
Engineers also fired a liquid oxygen and gaseous hydrogen rocket injector assembly as part of the test.
