Abstract

settingsOrder Article Reprints Open AccessArticle Suitableness of SLM Manufactured Turbine Blade for Aerodynamical Tests by Janusz Telega 1,*ORCID,Piotr Kaczynski 1ORCID,Małgorzata A. Śmiałek 2ORCID,Piotr Pawlowski 3ORCID andRyszard Szwaba 1ORCID 1 Institute of Fluid Flow Machinery Polish Academy of Sciences (IMP PAN), Fiszera 14, 80-231 Gdansk, Poland 2 Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Ship Technology, Institute of Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering, Gdansk University of Technology, Narutowicza 11/12, 80-233 Gdansk, Poland 3 Institute of Fundamental Technological Research Polish Academy of Sciences (IPPT PAN), Pawinskiego 5B, 02-106 Warsaw, Poland * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. Materials 2023, 16(7), 2866; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16072866 Received: 27 February 2023 / Revised: 24 March 2023 / Accepted: 29 March 2023 / Published: 4 April 2023 (This article belongs to the Topic Additive Manufacturing: Design, Opportunities, and Applications) Download Browse Figures Versions Notes Abstract This paper describes some insights on applicability of a Selective Laser Melting and Direct Metal Laser Sintering technology-manufactured turbine blade models for aerodynamic tests in a wind tunnel. The principal idea behind this research was to assess the possibilities of using ‘raw’ DLMS printed turbine blade models for gas-flow experiments. The actual blade, manufactured using the DLMS technology, is assessed in terms of surface quality (roughness), geometrical shape and size (outline), quality of counterbores and quality of small diameter holes. The results are evaluated for the experimental aerodynamics standpoint. This field of application imposes requirements that have not yet been described in the literature. The experimental outcomes prove the surface quality does not suffice to conduct quantitative experiments. The holes that are necessary for pressure measurements in wind tunnel experiments cannot be reduced below 1 mm in diameter. The dimensional discrepancies are on the level beyond acceptable. Additionally, the problem of ‘reversed tolerance’, with the material building up and distorting the design, is visible in elements printed with the DLMS technology. The results indicate the necessity of post-machining of the printed elements prior their experimental usage, as their features in the ‘as fabricated’ state significantly disturb the flow conditions.

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