Australian engineers 3D print rocket engine in just 4 months

In Australia, at Monash University in Melbourne, a team of engineers have managed to design, assemble, and test a 3D print rocket engine in just four months. The engine, named Project X, is based on an aerospike nozzle that redesigns the structure of more conventional engines.

A nozzle is an element which forms the motors of the flares by which the combustion gases are ejected. An aerospike nozzle makes it possible to improve the efficiency of the propulsion and therefore uses less gas when the altitude is low. Project X is the result of collaboration between engineers from Monash University and an Australian start-up, Amaero, specializing in aerospace. Together, they used additive manufacturing to recreate a rocket engine. They quickly realized the advantages of aerospike design.

The front of the engine

“Traditional bell-shaped rockets, as seen on the Space Shuttle, work at peak efficiency at ground level,” says Marten Jurg, an engineer with Amaero. “As they climb the flame spreads out reducing thrust. The aerospike design maintains its efficiency but is very hard to build using traditional technology. Using additive manufacturing (printing) we can create complex designs, print them, test them, tweak them, and reprint them in days instead of months.”