NASA Logo

NTRS

NTRS - NASA Technical Reports Server

Back to Results
NASA's In-Space Manufacturing Project: Materials and Manufacturing Process Development UpdateThe mission of NASA's In-Space Manufacturing (ISM) project is to identify, design, and implement on-demand, sustainable manufacturing solutions for fabrication, maintenance and repair during exploration missions. ISM has undertaken a phased strategy of incrementally increasing manufacturing capabilities to achieve this goal. The ISM project began with the development of the first 3D printer for the International Space Station. To date, the printer has completed two phases of flight operations. Results from phase I specimens indicated some differences in material properties between ground-processed and ISS-processed specimens, but results of follow-on analyses of these parts and a ground-based study with an equivalent printer strongly indicate that this variability is likely attributable to differences in manufacturing process settings between the ground and flight prints rather than microgravity effects on the fused deposition modeling (FDM) process. Analysis of phase II specimens from the 3D Printing in Zero G tech demo, which shed further light on the sources of material variability, will be presented. The ISM project has also developed a materials characterization plan for the Additive Manufacturing Facility, the follow-on commercial multimaterial 3D printing facility developed for ISS by Made in Space. This work will yield a suite of characteristic property values that can inform use of AMF by space system designers. Other project activities include development of an integrated 3D printer and recycler, known as the Refabricator, by Tethers Unlimited, which will be operational on ISS in 2018. The project also recently issued a broad area announcement for a multimaterial fabrication laboratory, which may include in-space manufacturing capabilities for metals, electronics, and polymeric materials, to be deployed on ISS in the 2022 timeframe.
Document ID
20170008163
Acquisition Source
Marshall Space Flight Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Prater, Tracie
(NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, AL, United States)
Bean, Quincy
(NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, AL, United States)
Werkheiser, Niki
(NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, AL, United States)
Ledbetter, Frank
(NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, AL, United States)
Date Acquired
August 31, 2017
Publication Date
June 26, 2017
Subject Category
Spacecraft Design, Testing And Performance
Report/Patent Number
M17-5753
Meeting Information
Meeting: 2017 National Space & Missile Materials Symposium (NSMMS) & the Commercial and Government Responsive Access to Space Technology Exchange (CRASTE)
Location: Indian Wells, CA
Country: United States
Start Date: June 26, 2017
End Date: June 29, 2017
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
No Preview Available