Improving engine performance requires creating new materials and improving design and manufacturing. Additive Manufacturing (AM) is advancing rapidly and allows us to produce details of complex shapes that cannot be produced by traditional methods. The goal of this study was to demonstrate the possibility of using AM for the manufacture of turbine blades with a complex geometry, including those with advanced cooling systems, which cannot be manufactured by conventional methods. This paper presents the results of the design and calculations of high-pressure turbine (HPT) cooled blades, as well as a low-pressure turbine (LPT) uncooled blade that was designed using topology optimization (TO). Several blades were manufactured using AM. 3D tomography test results for those blades confirm the possibility of AM application in production of blades with complex geometry.

One of the most urgent questions in aviation engine development is how to reduce the mass of composition details, while meeting the demands for strength and reliability. The production of complex, critical aircraft engine details is constrained by the limited capabilities of traditional fabrication methods. However, complex-shaped parts can now be created using emerging additive technologies that will avoid many of the traditional manufacturing methods’ limitations and reduce material and time costs. In addition, using additive technologies facilitates the manufacturing of details such as cellular and lattice structures, the production of which is impossible with traditional methods. The use of cellular structures is one way to reduce the weight of parts. Lattice structures are used to provide rigidity and strength in industries where parts are exposed to compression, bending and impact loads. The cell structures can withstand significant deformation without fracture and have a high resistance to fatigue. Since the weight of such structures is much less than the original prototypes, using them creates new opportunities for future aircraft applications. This article discusses the issue of creating lightweight structures for compressor components containing different cellular structures and their manufacturing using additive technology methods. We have examined several simple models of cellular structures and studied their geometrical, mass and stiffness characteristics. Analysis of the stress states of the cellular structures was conducted on the samples, with testing intended for three-point bending and cantilever beams. The influence of the geometrical parameters of the cells on the mass and strength characteristics of the structures was determined. The method for determining the density and elastic modulus of the equivalent homogenous material using these parameters in the calculations was complex. A few models containing the cellular region were proposed and the designs of several fan blades containing the cellular region were discussed. Samples to determine the strength of the developed structural elements were made from titanium alloy powder using Powder Bed Fusion (PBF). Continuous model samples and samples with different cellular structures were manufactured to test.

The gas turbine engine's (GTE) development aims for the increasing the efficiency, strength, reliability and safety of its components. To create competitive engines, housing parts and components with high functionality and reduced weight are needed. Especially difficult in the design and production are the gearboxes for aviation GTE. Traditional technologies based on precision casting or material forming operations have significant limitations due to the complexity of fulfilling multiple different requirements. Nowadays, one of the progressive production techniques is additive manufacturing. The article presents the results of computational and experimental studies that substantiate the applicability of laser additive technology to reduce the mass of body parts by up to 15% while ensuring their strength properties. The physical and mechanical characteristics of aluminum alloys acceptable for the manufacturing of housing parts were analyzed. The necessary characteristics of the powder alloy of the Al-Si system and the technological parameters of the L-PBF of the modified housing of the gear reducer are established. Using the finite element method (FEM) the L-PBF process was numerically simulated and the technological modes for synthesis of the AlSi10Mg alloy powder were optimized. With the help of a serial 3D printer ProX320DMP, the prototype of a gear housing was manufactured.

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