ASTM International Additive Manufacturing Committee publishes two new standards

ASTM International is an international standardization organization based in the USA. It publishes technical standards for goods and services and is one of the most important organizations in this field. ASTM International’s Additive Manufacturing Committee has now developed two new standards that deal with the quality of powders and parts for aerospace, respectively.

The first standard developed by the committee (F3571) is a guide for metal powder feedstock, intended to help manufacturers with quality control and assessing whether powder batches are within specification limits.

ASTM member Terry Stauffer explains that the guide will cover how to characterize the quality of the feedstock by measuring the quantity of its irregularly-shaped powder particles.

“The proportion of these detrimental non-spherical particles will affect the flowability and spreadability of the feedstock, as well as the mechanical properties of the finished metal powder parts,” says Stauffer.

The second standard (F3572) provides a part classification scheme that can serve as a consistent risk metric for additive manufactured parts in aviation. According to ASTM International member and F42 Vice-Chair Chul Park, this could serve processes such as inspection, testing, and qualification of these parts.

“It is important to understand the risk associated with AM usage by understanding its consequence of failure, including the loss of intended function,” says Park. “The information can be beneficial in establishing consistent processes relative to a defined risk scale.”

Park notes that further development and participation following this standard can help to accelerate the adoption of AM technology.

Both standards relate to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal #9 on resilient infrastructure, sustainable industrialization, and innovation.

Find out more about ASTM International at astm.org.