Manufacturing of Closed Impeller for Mechanically Pump Fluid Loop Systems Using Selective Laser Melting Additive Manufacturing Technology

In the space industry, the market demand for high-pressure mechanically pumped fluid loop (MPFL) systems has increased the interest for integrating advanced technologies in the manufacturing process of critical components with complex geometries. The conventional manufacturing process of a closed impeller encounters different technical challenges, but using additive manufacturing (AM) technology, the small component is printed, fulfilling the quality requirements. This paper presents the Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) process of a closed impeller designed for a centrifugal pump integrated in an MPFL system with the objective of defining a complete manufacturing process. A set of three closed impellers was manufactured, and each closed impeller was subjected to dimensional accuracy analysis, before and after applying an iterative finishing process for the internal surface area. One of the impellers was validated through non-destructive testing (NDT) activities, and finally, a preliminary balancing was performed for the G2.5 class. The process setup (building orientation and support structure) defined in the current study for a pre-existing geometry of the closed impeller takes full advantages of LPBF technology and represents an important step in the development of complex structural components, increasing the technological readiness level of the AM process for space applications.