Sintavia develops proprietary 3D printing process for copper alloy used by NASA

Sintavia LLC announced that it has developed a proprietary printing technology for GRCop-42, a copper alloy used by NASA and private space flight companies for making rocket thrust-chamber assemblies.

The Hollywood, Fla., designer and additive manufacturer of aerospace components says the technology, which combines a proprietary parameter set and eliminates the need for heat treatment, delivers GRCop-42 components having a minimum density of 99.94%, minimum tensile strength of 28.3 ksi, minimum ultimate yield strength of 52.7 ksi, and minimum elongation of 32.4%.

Sintavia also pointed out that the technology eliminates the need for hot isostatic pressing as a postprocessing step, reducing production time, complexity, and cost.

The company currently is developing proprietary standards for other materials, including refractory metal alloys used by the aerospace, defense, and space industries.