First metal 3D printing on the International Space Station ISS

A small S-curve deposited in liquefied stainless steel represents a major step forward for in-orbit manufacturing: this is the very first 3D metal printing on board the International Space Station, which took place on board ESA‘s Columbus laboratory module.

“This S-curve is a test line, successfully concluding the commissioning of our Metal 3D Printer,” explains ESA technical officer Rob Postema. “The success of this first print, along with other reference lines, leaves us ready to print full parts in the near future. We’ve reached this point thanks to the hard efforts of the industrial team led by Airbus Defense and Space SAS, the CADMOS User Support Center in France, from which print operations are overseen from the ground, as well as our own ESA team.”

The technology demonstrator for metal 3D printing was developed by an industrial team led by Airbus on behalf of ESA and reached the ISS in January. ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen installed the payload, which weighs around 180 kg, in the European Drawer Rack Mark II, part of the Columbus module.

Sébastien Girault, part of the team at consortium leader Airbus adds, “We’re very happy to have performed the very first metal 3D printing aboard the ISS—the quality is as good as we could dream.”

The design of the metal 3D printer is based on feeding stainless steel wire into the printing area, which is heated by a high-power laser-about a million times more powerful than a standard laser pointer. When immersed in the molten bath, the end of the wire melts and adds metal to the print. The entire printing process is monitored from the ground. The crew on board only has to open a nitrogen and vent valve before printing starts. For safety reasons, the printer operates in a completely sealed box to prevent excess heat or vapors from escaping.

Four molds were selected for subsequent full-scale 3D printing, which will later be brought back to earth for analysis. Two of these printed parts will be studied at ESA’s Materials and Electrical Components Laboratory in the Netherlands to understand whether prolonged microgravity has an impact on the printing of metal materials. The other two parts will be sent to the European Astronaut Center and the Technical University of Denmark (DTU).

“Two of these printed parts will be analyzed in the Materials and Electrical Components Laboratory at ESTEC in the Netherlands, to help us understand whether prolonged microgravity has an effect on the printing of metallic materials. The other two will go to the European Astronaut Center and the Technical University of Denmark, DTU,” said Advenit Makaya, ESA materials engineer at the ESA’s Directorate of Technology.

One of ESA’s long-term goals is to create a circular space economy where materials are recycled in orbit to use resources more efficiently, for example by converting old satellite parts into new tools or structures. An operational version of this metal 3D printer would eliminate the need to send tools on rockets to the ISS and allow astronauts to print needed parts directly in orbit.