Boeing to use 3D-printed titanium parts for Dreamliner
Aircraft maker Boeing has announced that it will use titanium parts manufactured by 3D printers to build the Boeing 787 Dreamliner passenger planes.
Boeing has placed an order for this with the Norwegian company Norsk Titanium. This company will make structural components that will be used for the construction of Boeing’s newest passenger aircraft, the Dreamliner. By using these parts, Boeing can eventually save two to three million dollars per Dreamliner, Reuters reports based on a conversation with the director of the Norwegian company.
By the end of the year, Norsk Titanium plans to start using nine 3D printers for the production of titanium parts at a factory in America. The component in question has received approval from the American aviation regulator, the FAA. Boeing and Norsk also hope to get approval later this year for the general properties of the 3D-printed titanium and the manufacturing process, so that more 3D-printed parts can be made from titanium without requiring separate approval.
It is the first time that 3D-printed parts are used for the aircraft frame, which must be able to withstand significant forces during the flight phase. The Dreamliner’s competitor, the Airbus A380, also makes relatively extensive use of titanium parts and also plans to manufacture certain titanium parts with 3D printers. General Electric is already making metal fuel injectors with 3D printers for the Dreamliner.
Titanium is an expensive, strong and lightweight metal that can withstand high temperatures and is very resistant to corrosion. It has recently been used for the construction of passenger aircraft, which are still mostly based on materials such as aluminum and composites. Titanium has been used more often in military aircraft, such as in the decommissioned SR-71 Blackbird in 1998, the American spy plane that operated at high altitudes and could reach speeds of more than mach 3.
Titanium is about seven times more expensive than aluminum. A Dreamliner costs a total of about 250 million euros; the titanium parts cost about 16 million euros.