QuaKoM-3D | Safe use of additively manufactured pressure equipment through improved quality assurance and design measures

Pressure-bearing components in additive manufacturing 

Pressure-bearing components are used in structures or systems to support and transmit external loads, pressures or forces. These components are crucial for the safe operation of various devices, machines and systems in different industries, including for example mechanical engineering, power generation and transportation. The additive manufacturing process offers an exceptionally high degree of design freedom, making it suitable for pressure-bearing components, especially heat exchangers and other components with flow.

In principle, pressure equipment is subject to high safety requirements, which are regulated in Europe by the Pressure Equipment Directive 2014/68/EU and the standards derived from it. Also because the standardisation for the manufacturing process is currently incomplete, high costs are incurred for the qualification of processes and components. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in particular do not use the technology and its advantages at all or only rarely.

This is where the successfully completed project »Qualification of additive manufacturing for process engineering pressure equipment (QuAFD)« comes in, in the course of which material states and properties on (container) walls for the material 1.4404 (austenitic stainless steel) were investigated in the range of 1 to 5 mm thickness. Differences between the same manufacturing systems and build-up directions were shown and quantified. Subsequently, design rules and procedures for a safe design were derived. Such a procedure was also indicated for applying a predetermined breaking point by a directly introduced surface notch. 

QuaKoM-3D continues with the reduction of qualification costs and increased safety of additively manufactured pressure devices.

Fraunhofer IGCV and TU Darmstadt cooperate on three exciting topics

As part of the QuaKoM-3D project, Fraunhofer IGCV is once again collaborating with TU Darmstadt on three issues:

1. Development of test specimen geometries specifically adapted to the particularities of laser beam melting and the need for pressure devices.
2. Investigation of the detection possibilities of stable process windows through cost-effective qualitative process monitoring.
3. Functional integration of safety-enhancing features. The criterion »leakage before rupture« should be able to be safely incorporated by design on any pressure-bearing components using design procedures.

Joint meeting in Darmstadt heralds the era of implementation

The first joint meeting of the project participants with the project-accompanying companies in Darmstadt in June 2023 marks the start of the project. The plans for the trial implementation have largely been drawn up and will be implemented in the following months.

Robust and efficient pressure-bearing components conquer the future.

Overall, additive manufacturing will help pressure-bearing components become lighter, more robust and more efficient in the future, which could revolutionise numerous application areas in various industries such as aerospace, automotive, power generation and medical. However, research and development are still needed to overcome potential challenges such as cost, material quality and scalability.